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FIRST LESSONS IN 



COOKING 




A Text Book For 
Elementary Schools 




BY 



CORA B. MILLER, B. S. 

Supervisor of Domestic Science and Domestic 
Art in the Fort Dodge Public Schools. 



MUteNMii m. 00., rr. sodce, 



■■,'?t»'M' 



FIRST LESSONS IN 

cookTng 




A Text Book For 
Elementary Schools 



CORA B. MILLER, B. S. 

Supervisor of Domestic Science and Domestic 
Art in the Fort Dodge Public Schools. 



MESSENGER PTS. CO., FT. DODGE, lA. 






D'3 



(^ 



MAR -3 1916 

©CI.A427251 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



INTRODUCTION 



REASONS FOR COOKING FOOD 

Food is cooked (1) to make it more attractive; (2) to develop 
flavor; (3) to make it more palatable; (4) to make it more easily 
digested; (5) to kill germs. 

METHODS OF COOKING 

Boiling — Cooking in boiling w^ater. 

Baking — Cooking in oven by heated air and radiation. 
Broiling — Cooking before or over glowing coals or under gas. 
Pan Broiling — Cooking on very hot griddle M^ith only sufficient 
fat to prevent sticking. 

Stewing — Cooking in water at temperature 160° to 180° F. 

Dry Steaming — Cooking in a double boiler. 

Steaming — Cooking in contact with steam. 

Frying — Cooking by immersion in deep fat. 

Sauteing — Cooking in small quantity of fat — often called frying. 

Braising — Combination of stewing and baking. 

Fricaseeing — Combination of sauteing and stewing. 

APPLICATION OF HEAT IN COOKING 

Success in cooking depends largely upon the regulation of the heat 
which is applied. No two stoves work exactly alike and it is neces- 
sary, therefore, to learn to regulate the one which is to be used. The 
parts of different stoves are practically the same and the principles 
of fire building the same. 

COAL AND WOOD RANGES 
The Parts of a Range 

1. Fire box, in which the fire is built. 

2. Grate, which is at the bottom of the fire box. This is often 
reversible so that either coal or wood may be used. The ashes pass 
through the grate into the ash pan. 

3. Ash pan, which is below the fire box. 

4. Dampers. These control the supply of air to the fire box, the 
passage of heated air up the chimney and the circulation of hot air 
around the oven. 

5. Ovens for baking and for keeping food warm. 

6. Top with removable covers. 

7. Stovepipe to make a draft and to carry off the smoke. 

Building the Fire 

1. Remove the covers over the fire box. 

2. Remove the ashes from the fire box. 

3. Place crumpled pieces of paper and shavings in the fire box 
and place on top of them several pieces of pine or corncobs and then 
a few small sticks of wood, and, if it is to be a coal fire, a small 
shovelful of coal. The fuel must be laid so that the air can circulate 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



freely through it. Do not fill the fire box more than three-fourths 
full. 

4. Place the co\ ers on the stove. 

5. Open the damper or "draft" which is below the fire box and 
turn the chimney damper so that the draft goes up the chimney. The 
oven damper may be opened, but this is not always necessary. When 
the fire is well started close the oven draft, and the front draft, and 
shut off a part of the chimney draft. 

Care of the Stove 

Keep the stove clean, brushing off immediately anything that is 
spilled on the top or in the oven. 

A blackboard eraser on which a few drops of oil or kerosene has 
been placed is a convenient thing to have for cleaning the top. 
Empty the ash pan every day, never allowing it to become full. 
Clean the oven flue often, once a month, if the oven is in constant use. 

DIRECTIONS FOR LIGHTING A GAS STOVE 

To light a gas burner, strike a match, turn the cock on full, 
then apply the match. The flame should be blue; a yellow flame 
does not give as much heat, smokes and wastes gas. 

FIND THE COST OF THE FOLLOWING FOODS AND FILL IN 
THE TABLE. 



FOOD 


1 Pound 


1 Cupful 


1 
Tablespoonful 


1 
Teaspoonful 


Flour 










Potatoes 










Butter 










Cream of Wheat 










Rolled Oats 










Salt 










Rice 










Baking Powder 










Soda 










Milk 










Crisco 










Vanilla 










Spice 











FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



Approximate Measure of One Pound 

Two cupsful of milk Two cupsful of rice 

Two cupsful of butter, lard or Six cupsful of oatmeal 

Crisco Four cupsful of coffee 

Four cupful s of flour Eight large eggs 

Two cupsful granulated sugar 
Four and one-half cupsful of 

Graham flour 
Learn the name and place of each utensil in the desk. 



LESSON I 

There are as many lablespoonsful in an ounce as there are cups- 
ful in a pound. 

FOOD 

Uses of Food in the Body. The food which we eat repairs and 
builds tissue, furnishes heat and energy, and regulates the body pro- 
cesses, such as digestion, respiration, etc. 

In order to keep the body in good condition it is necessary for it 
to have the right kind and the right amount of food and to have it 
cooked in such a way that it can be used to the best advantage. 

Classification of Foods on the Basis of Composition All foods 

ai'e made up of the following compounds: Water, mineral matter, 
protein, carbo-hydrate, fat. These compounds are called food stuffs, 
niach foodstuff has definite uses in the body which will be learned 
later. 

Almost every food contains more than one of the foodstuffs, but 
if it contains a large amount of any one of them it is classified in 
that group; for example, meat contains a large amount of protein 
and is, therefore, called a protein food; bread contains a large 
amount of carbohydrate and is called a carbohydrate food. 

Classification of Foods on the Basis of Origin Foods may also 

be divided into the two large groups. Animal Foods and Plant Foods. 
The most of the animal foods contain a large amount of protein and 
can, therefore, be classified in the protein group also. The most of 
the plant foods contain carbohydrate and can be classified in the car- 
bohydrate group. There are some exceptions to this general classi- 
fication, butter being a good example. It contains so much fat that 
it is a fatty food. 

Classification of Animal Foods. The animal foods are divided 
into two groups. The Flesh of Animals and Animal Products. 

We shall take up first the study of one of the protein foods, eggs. 
Eggs may also be classified as an animal food under the subdivision 
of animal products. 



LESSON II 

MEASURING 

Exact measuring is necessary to get the best results in cooking. 
All the recipes in this book call for level measurements. Measure 
dry materials into a cup with a spoon, leveling the top with a knife. 
To measure a spoonful of dry material, heap it on the spoon and 
level with a knife. Half a spoonful is obtained by dividing a spoonful 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



lengthwise, a quarter of a spoonful is obtained by dividing a spoonful 
lengthwise and crosswise. A cupful of liquid is all the cup will hold. 
A spoonful of liquid is all the spoon will hold. 

Abbreviations Table of Measures 

tb. — Tablespoonful 3 t. equals 1 tb. 

t. — Teaspoonful 16 tb. dry material equals 1 c. 

c. — Cupful 12 tb. liquid equals 1 c. 

spk. — speck 2 c. equals 1 pt. 

pt. — Pint 2 pt. equals 1 qt. 

qt,— Quart 4 qts. equals 1 gal. 

Use flour, sugar and water for measuring and measure a cupful, 
a tablespoonful and a teaspoonful of each and also fractions thereof. 

DISH-WASHING 

Scrape all food from the dishes. Soak dishes that have been used 
for eggs and starchy foods in cold water, those used for sugary sub- 
stance in hot water; wipe greasy dishes with soft paper and soak in 
hot water. Pile all dishes neatly and compactly at the right-hand side 
of the table, putting all of one kind together. Pile knives, forks and 
spoons separately. Place a dishpan, about half full of clean, hot, 
soapy water, at the left of the dishes; plat^e another pan, about half 
full of clean, hot, clear water at the left of the washing pan. At the 
left of the rinsing pan leave a space for piling the clean dishes after 
they are wiped. Do not drop water on the floor while washing and 
wiping the dishes. Keep the drawers of the table closed until the 
dishes are all wiped so that water will not be dropped into them. 
Wash the cleanest dishes first. Get clean dishwater as often as nec- 
essary. Scour the steel knives and forks with Dutch Cleanser, using 
a cork. When the dish-washing is finished, wash the table thor- 
oughly; wash and wipe the dishpans; wash the dishcloth, rinse it 
well and hang it up where it will dry quickly; hang the dish wipers 
where they will dry quickly also, and wash the sink with hot soapy 
water. 

Knives and forks with wood, bone or ivory handles should not be 
put into the water. 

Stains should be removed from granite ware with Sapolio or 
Dutch Cleanser; a pastry board should be scraped with the grain of 
the board and wiped with a cloth wet in cold water. 

METHOD OF WORKING 

1. See that the fire is ready for use. 

2. Collect all dishes that you will need, including a pan on which 
to lay the sticky ones. This pan is called a utensil pan. 

3. Collect all materials that will be used. 

4. Measure materials. 

C. Use no more dishes than are absolutely necessary. Measure 
dry materials first, then liquids and then fats. Why? 

6. Clear up as you work, putting dishes to soak as soon as they 
are emptied. 

THE USE OF WATER IN COOKING 

Water which has been standing in pipes for any length of time 
should not be used for cooking or for drinking. It may contain some 
lead compounds which are injurious. 

Water at different temperatures is used for cooking. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



Experiment 

Place a stew pan with cold water in it over the fire. Place a 
thermometer in it keeping the bulb immersed but not touching the 
bottom of the pan. Observe the changes in the water as the follow- 
ing temperatures are reached: At 98° and at 150° test it with the 
fingers. 

At 98° Fahrenheit it is called lukewarm. 

At 150°, too hot to keep the fingers in, it is scalding. 

At 185°, when small air bubbles appear at the bottom of the 
vessel, it is simmering. 

At 212°, when large bubbles appear on the surface and break, al- 
lowing steam to escape, it is boiling. 

Since by ordinary means water cannot be made hotter after it 
begins to boil, fuel is wasted in keeping up more fire than is required 
to keep it at the boiling point. Economize heat by keeping vessels in 
which food is being cooked covered. 

At what temperature does water freeze? 



LESSON III 

Protein Foods— Eggs 
COOKING EGGS IN THE SHELL 

For two eggs allow one pint of water; for each additional egg, an 
extra cupful. Put the water in a sauce pan, let it come to the boiling 
point. Place the egg in the water with a spoon and cover the pan. 
Remove at once from the fir^ and allow to stand from six to ten 
minutes. 

The size and temperature of the eggs varies the length of time 
required for cooking them. If they are preferred hard, they should 
stand in the water forty-five minutes, the water being kept warm, 
but not boiling. 

The white of egg to be easily digested should be soft and jelly- 
like and not tough. If the egg is boiled, the white is toughened. 

Hard cooked eggs may be added to medium white sauce and served 
as a lunch or supper dish. 

NOTE : White sauce may be prepared by the teacher before class 
time and used with the hard cooked eggs. Directions for making it 
are given in lesson XI. 

COOKING OF PROTEIN FOODS 

Boiling or cooking in the oven at a high temperature toughens 
any protein. Protein foods, therefore, should be cooked at a low tem- 
perature. 

Experiment 

(b) (To be done by the teacher.) Put a drop of nictric acid on 
the white of the egg. Notice that it turns yellow. This shows that 
it contains a substance called protein. Protein builds up the tissues 
of the body. 

USE OF EGGS IN THE DIET 

Eggs which are properly cooked are easily digested. They con- 
tain a large amount of protein and are, therefore, a valuable food for 



8 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

the building and repair of tissue. They are valuable also for the fat 
and mineral matter which they contain, the latter being in the yolk 
of the egg in the form of iron and phosphorus compounds which are 
essential for the growth of the body. These two mineral matter com- 
pounds are apt to be lacking in the diet and for this reason, as well as 
for the reason that they contain protein, eggs should be used freely in 
the diet and especially in that of children. They are most often 
served for breakfast but may be served also for lunch or supper. 

COST OF EGGS 

What is the cost of eggs per dozen? When are they the cheapest? 
Are all eggs the same size? Would it be better to buy them by the 
dozen or by the pound? Why? 

RULES FOR PERSONAL CLEANLINESS IN THE KITCHEN 

I. It is best to wear a short washable dress when cooking or 
doing other house work. Why? A light colored apron should be 
worn while cooking. Why? Clothes should always be suited to the 
occupation. 

II. Pin or tie the hair back, so that no hairs may fall into the 
food. 

III. Before preparing food, wash the hands thoroughly with soap 
and water and clean the nails. Wash the hands after touching the 
hair, pocket handkerchief or anything else not clean. Do not use the 
handkerchief as a holder. Keep it in the pocket of your apron. 

IV. To taste of the food which you are cooking, take a little up 
with the mixing spoon. Put it in another spoon and taste from that. 



LESSON IV 

Protein Foods— Eggs 
POACHED EGGS 

Have ready a shallow pan containing enough boiling, salted water 
to cover the eggs, allowing one teaspoonful of salt for one pint of 
water. Break an egg into a saucer and slip it carefully into the 
water. Cook until the white is firm and a film forms over the yolk. 
The water should not boil while it is cooking. Why? Remove the 
eggs carefully with a skimmer and serve them on buttered toast. On 
each put a little salt, butter and pepper. 

Egg "poachers" may be purchased at the hardware store. These 
steam the eggs, and, since the egg is not put into the water, none of 
it is lost and the cooking is more economical. If there is an "egg 
poacher" in the school equipment, have part of the class cook eggs 
in it. 

TOAST 

To make toast, bread should not be less than two days old. Cut 
it in slices about one-third of an inch thick. It should be toasted 
slowly enough to allow it to become crisp. Toast until golden brown. 
Do not let it burn. Crisp toast is easily digested. Soft toast is as 
hard to digest as fresh bread. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



SELECTING AND TESTING EGGS 

Fresh eggs have a thick, rough shell and feel heavy. Hold the 
egg between your eye and the light. If clear, it is fresh. Drop the 
egg into cold water. If it sinks it is fresh. Shake the egg, holding 
it near the ear. If the contents rattle it is somewhat stale. 

WAYS OF PRESERVING EGGS 

1. Keep in a cool, dry place. 
. 2. Keep the air out. This may be done by packing them in bran, 
lime, sand or sawdust; by immersing them in lime water; by coating 
them with fat. The best method known is to immerse them in a 
solution of sodium silicate, called "water glass." This solution with 
directions for using it may be obtained at a drug store. 

The introduction of cold storage may be the solution of the prob- 
lem of keeping eggs. Eggs which are perfectly fresh when placed in 
cold storage will keep many months. Should they be sold as fresh 
or labeled as cold storage eggs? Some states have laws governing 
the sale of cold storage eggs. Has your state such laws? 



LESSON V 

Protein Foods — Eggs 

PLAIN OMELET 

4 eggs. 1. 

2 cup milk. 2 tb. 

i teaspoon salt. i t. 

1 tablespoon butter. I t. 

Dash of pepper. Few grains. 

Separate whites from yolks. Beat yolks until thick and lemon 
colored; add salt, pepper and milk. Beat the whites until stiff and 
dry, cut and fold them into first mixture until they have taken it all 
up. Heat omelet pan and butter the sides and bottom. Turn in the 
mixture, spread evenly, place on stove where it will cook slowly. 
When well "puffed" and delicately browned underneath, place pan on 
grate of oven to finish cooking the top. The omelet is cooked, if it 
is firm to the touch when pressed with the finger. Fold and turn on 
hot platter. If desired, one cupful of thin white sauce may be poured 
around the omelet. 

BEATING EGGS 

Beating entangles air in fine bubbles in the egg. 

Beat the whites on a plate or platter with a fork or wire beater. 

They are beaten "stiff" when they can be cut with a knife; "dry" 
when they are flaky. 

Beat yolks in a bowl with a fork or a Dover beater until they are 
thick and lemon colored. 

Eggs are beaten slightly when yolks and whites are well mixed. 

Do not let eggs stand after beating them, as the air which has 
been beaten in will escape. 

REVIEW 

1. Into what divisions may food be classified on the basis of 
composition ? 



10 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



origin 



2. Into what divisions may foods be classified on the basis of 

3. How should eggs be classified? 

4. Tell how to cook foods containing protein. 

5. For what is protein used in the body? 

6. Give the table of measures. 

7. Tell how to measure a cupful of flour. 

8. Give the directions for washing dishes. 

9. Give the rules for personal cleanliness in the kitchen. 



LESSON VI 

Carbohydrate Foods— Potatoes 
BOILED POTATOES 

Select potatoes of uniform size. Wash them, pare them length- 
wise as thinly as possible, remove the eyes and dark spots with the 
point of the knife and drop them into cold water. 

Put them into a kettle with enough boiling water to cover them 
and boil gently for about thirty minutes, or until they can be pierced 
easily with a fork. After they have boiled about twenty minutes add 
salt, using one tablespoonful for six medium sized potatoes. When 
done, drain off all the water, shake the kettle gently over the fire to 
make the potatoes dry and mealy. Serve in a hot dish uncovered. 
See that the water boils gently while they are cooking, as rapidly 
boiling water wears off the outside of the potato before the center is 
cooked. If the outside of large potatoes becomes soft while the cen- 
ters are still hard add a little cold water. 

Boiled potatoes may be served just as they are, or they may be 
mashed and seasoned with salt, pepper and butter. After being 
mashed and seasoned, they may be put through a ricer. 

For what meal would you serve boiled or mashed potatoes? 

PLANT FOODS 

Structure 

A plant is made up of little cells containing grains of starch. The 
wall of the cell is made of a tough material called cellulose which is 
not digestible except when very young and tender. 

Experiments 

1. In a small stewpan mix one teaspoonful of cornstarch with 
one tablespoon of cold water and add i cup of boiling water. Cook, 
stirring constantly, until clear. Cool. 

To this starch paste add a few drops of a dilute solution of iodine. 
The starch will turn blue. This is the common test for starch. The 
power to thicken the liquid in which it is cooked is also an evidence 
of starch. 

2. Grate a small potato into a bowl of water. Strain. Notice the 
coarse material which is left in the strainer. This is the cellulose of 
the potato. Let the part which passed through the strainer stand 
for ten or fifteen minutes and then carefully pour off the liquid leav- 
ing the sediment in the dish. To this sediment add boiling water and 
cook as in the preceding experiment. Cool a little of it and add to it 
a drop of iodine. Does the potato contain starch? 

3. Put a drop of iodine solution on a small piece of the boiled 
potato. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 11 

Use of Starch in the Body 

Carbohydrates produce heat and energy in the body. Starch is a 
carbohydrate and therefore produces heat and energy in the body. 
Starch must be cooked before it can be digested. 

Methods of Cooking Foods Containing Starch 

Experiment one shows us that starch is cooked by bringing it to 
the boiling point. Most starchy foods contain also cellulose which 
must be cooked as well as the starch. Boiling the cellulose will cook 
it or it may be cooked at a lower temperature, the latter method re- 
quiring a longer time. The cellulose is cooked when it is soft. The 
length of time required for cooking foods containing cellulose varies. 
It depends upon the amount and the toughness of the cellulose pres- 
ent. Either of the following methods may be used for cooking foods 
which contain starch and cellulose. 

1. Boil or steam until soft. 

2. Boil for a short time to cook the starch and then cook at a 
low temperature for a long time to soften the cellulose. A double 
boiler or a tireless cooker is used for this method. 

Which method was used for the potatoes? How long did it take 
to soften the cellulose? 



LESSON VII 

Carbohydrate Foods — Potatoes 

BAKED POTATOES 

Select medium sized potatoes, scrub them until perfectly clean 
with a brush and wipe them dry. Bake in a moderately hot oven 
until soft — about forty-five minutes, turning them occasionally. When 
soft, break the skin with a fork or by pressing the potato in a cloth, 
to let the steam escape so that the potato will not be soggy. Serve 
immediately in an uncovered dish. 

Potatoes can be baked, because there is enough water in them to 
combine with the starch. Baked potatoes are regarded as more 
healthful than potatoes cooked in any other way. 

Use of Potatoes in the Diet 

The potato is an excellent example of the starchy foods. 

Potatoes are in the best condition for use in the late summer and 
autumn. Very new potatoes are indigestible, because the starch in 
them is not ripe. Old or poor potatoes should be soaked in cold 
water before using. Sprouting potatoes should not be eaten. 

Since potatoes have not a decided flavor and can be cooked in so 
many ways, we can eat them every day and not tire of them. 

Cost of Potatoes 

What is the cost of a bushel of potatoes? How many pounds are 
there in a bushel of potatoes? What is the cost of one pound of 
potatoes? What is the cost of one medium sized potato? 



12 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

Classification of Plant Foods 

Plant foods are often classified in the following way: 

1. Cereals. 
Example : — Wheat. 

2. Roots and Tub,ers. 

a. Starchy roots and tubers. 
Example : — Potatoes. 

b. Succulent roots and tubers. 
Example : — Carrots. 

3. Legumes. 
Examples: — Peas, beans. 

4. Green Vegetables. 
Example : — Lettuce. 

5. Fruits. 

Those belonging to divisions 2, 3 and 4 are called "vegetables." 
The green vegetables are made up almost entirely of cellulose, min- 
eral matter and water. The roots, and tubers contain, in addition to 
these three things, starch. The legumes contain in addition to these 
four things, considerable protein, and may, therefore, sometimes take 
the place of animal protein foods in our meals. 



LESSON VIII 

Carbohydrate Foods— Cereals 

General Directions for Cooking Breakfast Cereals 

Stir the cereal gradually into boiling salted water, allowing one- 
half a teaspoonful of salt to each cupful of water. Boil directly over 
the flame for about five minutes and then cook over hot water for a 
long time. 

Stir coarse, flaky cereals as little as possible. Fine granular ones 
may be beaten. 

Cereals may be boiled, dry steamed or cooked in a fireless cooker. 

Cereals should absorb all the water in which they are cooked, and 
should be stiff" enough to be chewed. If too soft, they are swallowed 
without being mixed with saliva and are less readily digested. 

For coarse, flaky cereals use two measures of water to one meas- 
ure of cereal. For fine granular ones use four measures of water to 
one of cereal. 

Directions for Using a Double Boiler 

Fill the lower part of the boiler about one-third full of boiling 
water, and keep it boiling. More water should be added from time to 
time. The food to be cooked is placed in the upper part of the boiler 
which is then placed in the lower part. 

Cream of Wheat 



4 c. water 


g c. 


1 c. Cream of Wheat 


2 tb. 


2 t. salt 


3-16 t. 


1 pound dates 


3 dates 



Put the water with the salt in the upper part of the double boiler 
and set it directly over the heat. When it boils, stir in gradually the 
cream of wheat. Boil for about five minutes and then put the two 
parts of the boiler together, and cook three-quarters of an hour or 
longer. Dates cut in small pieces may be added a short time before 
it is done. Serve in cereal dishes. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 13 

To prepare dates for use, wash them in cold water and remove 
stones. Have dates added to the cream of wheat by one-half of the 
class and served plain by the other half. The cream of wheat with 
the dates in it might be used as a simple dessert. 

Cereals 

Cereals, or grains, are grasses, the seeds of which are used for 
food. Among the most important are wheat, corn, oats, rice, rye 
and barley. From these, various breakfast foods, flours and meals 
are made. Cereals, like potatoes, contain starch. All except rice 
contain much woody fibre tougher than that in potatoes, and so need 
long and thorough cooking. Long cooking improves the flavor also. 
Cook prepared cereals about twice as long as directed on the package. 

Use of Cereals in the Diet 

Cereals contain such a high per cent of starch that they are 
classed with the carbohydrate foods. They do, however, contain quite 
a little protein also and for this reason the foods made from them, 
as breakfast foods and bread, are very valuable. The outer coats of 
the grain contain considerable mineral matter and it is wise, there- 
fore, to use freely the foods made from the whole grain. 

The cereals furnish about one-third of the food of the American 
people. 

Experiment 

Put a drop of iodine solution on a little of the cooked cereal. Does 
it contain starch? 



LESSON IX 

Carbohydrate Foods— Cereals 
ROLLED OATS 

1 c. rolled oats I c. 

2 c. water h c. 
1 t. salt I t. 

Follow directions for cream of wheat. 
The most of the oat preparations which are sold for breakfast 
food have been partially cooked by steam and, therefore, do not need 
as long cooking as the raw oatmeal which should be steamed about 
six hours. 

BAKED APPLES 

Wash and core sound tart apples. Place them in earthenware or 
enameled baking dish. Put one tablespoonful of white or brown 
sugar (a little spice may be mixed with it) in the core of each apple. 
Pour enough boiling water around the apples to cover the bottom of 
the dish, and bake until soft in a hot oven, frequently dipping the 
syrup in the pan over the apples. Serve either hot or cold with 
cream. They are often served for breakfast in the dish with the 
cereal. 

USE OF THE FIRELESS COOKER 

The fireless cooker is being used extensively for the cooking of 



14 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

breakfast cereals and other foods which require long, slow cooking. 
It is a means of saving both time and fuel. When cooking cereals 
in the fireless cooker follow the directions which come with the 
cooker as the amount of water used is greater than when they are 
cooked as directed above. 

Experiment 

Test the cooked cereal with iodine for starch. . 

COST OF BREAKFAST CEREALS 

What is the cost of a pound of oatmeal; a pound of cream of 
wheat; a pound of shredded wheat biscuit; a pound of puffed rice? 
Which are the cheaper, those which are bought uncooked or those 
which are bought ready to eat ? Find the cost of a pound of oat- 
meal and a pound of rice sold in bulk and in cartons. Which is the 
cheaper? What are the advantages of the carton? 

Review 

1. Give directions for boiling potatoes. 

2. Classify plant foods. Give an example of each class. 

3. What foodstuff do potatoes and cereals contain in large 
amount? What does it do for the body? 

4. For what foodstuff are eggs valued? What does it do for 
the body? 

5. Tell how to cook starchy foods. 

6. Tell how to cook protein foods. 

7. Which costs more, an egg or a potato? Do they do the same 
thing for the body? Would it be vdse, therefore, to substitute at all 
times the cheaper for the more expensive? 



LESSON X 

Carbohydrate Foods— Cereals 



BOILED RICE 



1 c. rice 


1 tb. 


13 c. 


2 qts. water 


i t. 


1 tb. salt 



Put the water in a sauce pan to boil. Drop the rice slowly into 
the boiling water so as not to stop the boiling. Boil rapidly, un- 
covered, from twenty to thirty minutes, or until the grains can be 
crushed between the thumb and finger. Turn it into a strainer to 
drain, rinse with hot water and dry in the serving dish in the oven. 
Each grain should be soft and distinct. The motion of the water 
keeps the grains separate and the washing and rinsing removes the 
loose starch which would cause them to stick together. 

Rice may be dry steamed in a double boiler like the other cereals. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 15 



TOMATO SAUCE 

1 cup tomato juice 

2 cloves 

Sprig of parsley 

Slice of onion or dash of onion salt 

i inch square of bay leaf 

2 teaspoonful salt 

Dash of pepper 

2 tablespoonsful flour 

2 tablespoonsful butter 

Boil the tomato and seasonings together about three minutes. 
Strain. Rub the flour and butter together to form a smooth paste 
and add the liquid tomato. Cook, stirring constantly, until it boils. 
Remove from the fire. 

Rice has so little flavor that some food having a strong flavor, as 
tomato sauce, is often served with it. 

Experiment 

Show that rice contains starch. 

Use of Rice in the Diet 

Boiled rice may be served for dinner instead of potatoes to fur- 
nish variety. Since they both contain so much starch, they should 
not be served at the same meal. 

Rice may be dry steamed like the cream of wheat and oatmeal. 
It is often combined with milk or milk and eggs to make puddings 
which are served for dessert. These are excellent desserts for child- 
ren. 

Rice has less tough cellulose than the other cereals and is very 
easily and thoroughly digested. 

SAUCES AND GRAVIES 

Sauces and gravies are made from liquids which are thickened 
with some starchy substance as flour or cornstarch. The starch is 
often combined with fat before adding it to the liquid to keep it 
from getting lumpy. The fat also adds flavor and nutriment. 

Methods of Adding Starchy Thickenings to Liquids 

1. Mix the starch and thickening to form a smooth paste. Add 
the liquid which may be either hot or cold, and stir constantly until 
the mixture boils. When there is a large amount of liquid time is 
saved by heating it before adding it to the thickening. 

2. Mix the starch with just enough cold liquid to form a smooth 
paste and then add it to the hot liquid, stirring while it is being 
added and also while it is cooking until it reaches the boiling point. 

3. Mix the starch with sugar. Add it to the hot liquid, stirring 
constantly until it boils. 



LESSON XI 

Mineral Matter Foods — Vegetables 

Cook one or more vegetables which are in season and serve some 
buttered and others in thin white sauce. 



16 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

Asparagus. Wash. Cut off the tough part. Leave the stalks 
whole or cut in half inch pieces. Cook in boiling salted water from 
fifteen to thirty minutes or until soft. Drain. Season with salt, 
pepper and butter, and serve on toast moistened with the cooking 
water or in thin white sauce. 

Beets. Wash, taking care not to break the skins. Cut off the 
tops about two inches above the root. Cook in boiling water until 
tender. Salt half an hour before taking from the fire. Young beets 
should cook about one hour, old ones from four to five hours. Remove 
the skins and slice or chop. Season with butter, salt and pepper. 

Cabbage. Remove outer leaves and stalk. Separate leaves and 
wash thoroughly. Cook, uncovered, in boiling salted water until 
tender, but not sodden. It will cook in about thirty minutes. Drain. 
Season with butter, salt and pepper or serve in thin white sauce. 

Carrots. Wash, scrape and cut in half-inch cubes. Boil until 
tender. Young ones will cook in twenty to thirty minutes; old ones 
require from thirty minutes to an hour. Serve in thin white sauce. 

Tomatoes. Let stand in boiling water for about one minute, so 
that the skin will come off easily. Peel and cut in slices. Boil gently 
for about twenty minutes. Season with butter, salt and pepper. A 
little sugar may be added, if desired, and bread or cracker crumbs to 
thicken them. 

WHITE SAUCE 

White sauce is made of milk thickened with flour and seasoned 

with butter, salt and pepper. It is made of different thicknesses as 
follows: 

Milk Flour Butter Salt Pepper 

Thin 1 c. 1 tb. 1 tb. J t. dash 

Medium 1 c. 2 tb. 2 tb. i t. dash 

Thick 1 c. 3 tb. 3 tb. i t. dash 

Rub the butter and flour together in a sauce pan, add the milk, 
stir steadily over a moderate heat until the sauce boils. Remove 
immediately from the fire. Add the salt and pepper. 

Review the classification of plant foods in lesson VII. 

General Rules for the Selection and Preparation of Vegetables 

Use vegetables which are in season, selecting the medium sized 
or small ones. Why? 

All vegetables should be washed thoroughly in cold water. All 
which are not crisp and firm should be soaked in cold water. 

Most vegetables, except the very strong flavored ones, should be 
cooked in a small amount of water, so that the mineral matter which 
they contain will not be lost by dissolving in the water. If the water 
they are cooked in is good, it should be served with the vegetables 
or saved for soup. 

Strong flavored vegetables, as cabbage and onions, should be 
cooked uncovered. Green vegetables keep their color better if cooked 
uncovered. 

Vegetables should be cooked only until tender; longer cooking 
makes them indigestible. Cabbage is an excellent example of this 
fact. 



FITST LESSONS IN COOKING 17 

LESSON XII 

Mineral Matter Foods— Vegetables 
COOKED SALAD DRESSING 

i t. mustard J t. 

1 t. salt i t. 
i t. paprika spk. 

2 t. flour J t. 
1 t. sugar 4 t. 

1 egg yolk 1 t. 

3 c. milk i c. 

2 t. butter i t. 
i c. vinegar 1 tb. 

Mix the dry ingredients, stir into them the yolk of egg, butter and 
milk. Cook it in the double boiler, stirring constantly, until it begins 
to thicken; then stir in the vinegar a little at a time. 

The dressing w^ill be improved, if cream is used instead of milk. 

Use of Mineral Matter in the Diet 

Some mineral matter is necessary for every process that goes on 
in the body and it enters into the composition of all the tissues. It 
is very necessary, therefore, that a sufficient amount of it be fur- 
nished by the food. Care is necessary, especially with children, to 
have foods rich in mineral matter. Most foods contain some mineral 
matter, but fruits and vegetables are especially valued for it. The 
outer coats of the grains are rich in mineral matter and for this 
reason foods made of the w^hole grain should be used freely. We 
depend largely upon vegetables and fruits, however, for the mineral 
matter. 

USE OF VEGETABLES IN THE DIET 

All vegetables are valuable for the mineral salts which they con- 
tain. Some, as potatoes, corn, peas, beans, beets and carrots, furnish 
a considerable amount of carbohydrate. A few, as peas and beans, 
are rich in protein also. All vegetables contain also a large amount 
of water and material which is practically indigestible, the woody 
part of the plant which is called cellulose. The cellulose is necessary 
for stimulating the intestines to action. The movement of the intes- 
tines is necessary for the proper digestion of the food and for the 
proper elimination of the waste material. It prevents constipation. 

It is a good thing to have two vegetables besides potatoes for 
every dinner. It is best to have one of them uncooked. In the spring 
and summer months when they are plentiful, they should form a 
large part of our diet. 

Compounds of iron and phosphorus are two of the mineral mat- 
ters which are apt to be lacking in the diet and especial pains should 
be taken to eat foods which are rich in them. Vegetables which have 
the green coloring matter in them contain considerable iron. The 
succulent roots and tubers have quite a high per cent of both iron 
and phosphorus. 

What other foods have you studied which contain these sub- 
stances? 



18 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

LESSON XIII 

Mineral Matter Foods— Vegetables and Fruits 

FRENCH DRESSING 

3 tb, olive oil 2 t. 

i t. salt spk. 

s t. paprika spk. 

1 tb. vinegar 1 t. 

Stir the seasonings into the oil, add the vinegar and stir vigor- 
ously until the dressing thickens slightly. 

Serve French dressing with green vegetables as lettuce, cucum- 
bers, cabbage and string beans. 

General Directions for Preparing Ingredients for Salads 

Lettuce, prasley and celery should be washed very carefully in 
cold water, looking sharply to see that no insects cling to them; then 
shaken lightly to partially dry them, and then wiped with a dry 
cloth. 

Meat should be free from bone, gristle and fat and cut in small 
pieces. Vegetables should be cut in small pieces also. Cooked and 
seasoned vegetables which have been left from a meal should be 
rinsed in hot water. 

All ingredients for a salad should be vei'y cold. The salad should 
be well seasoned and attractively garnished. 

Suggestions for Salads 

•The following combinations may be used with cooked dressing: 

1. Equal measures of diced apples and celery and one-half a 
measure of chopped nuts. 

2. One slice of pineapple, 2 marshmallows cut in quarters, 1 or 2 
English walnuts cut in small pieces. Place pineapple on a lettuce 
leaf, scatter marshmallows and nuts over the pineapple and put a 
spoonful of salad dressing in the center. 

3. Equal measures shredded cabbage and cocoanut. 

4. Equal measures of pineapple (or grapefruit), marshmallows 
and white grapes. 

5. Cabbage, peas and pimentoes. 

6. Equal measures diced chicken and celery. Chopped nuts and 
olives may be added. 

Use of Salads in the Diet 

Many vegetables, such as lettuce and celery, which are rich in 
mineral salts, should be eaten raw. Such vegetables are often used 
in salads. 

The food value of a green salad is not high, but the salts it sup- 
plies and its refreshing appetizing qualities make it a wholesome 
food. Fat is furnished in an easily digested form by the oil or butter 
used in the dressing. The acid of the vinegar may help to digest the 
cellulose. A meat, fish or egg salad with a cooked or Mayonnaise 
dressing contains a great deal of nourishment, and, when served, 
should form one of the main dishes of the meal. A green or fruit 
salad should be served with as heavy a meal as dinner. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 19 

LESSON XIV 

Mineral Matter Foods— Fruits 

APPLE SAUCE 

Method 1. Quai-ter, core and pare an apple. Cut each quarter in 
two. Make a syrup of | c. of water and Ig tb. of sugar and cook 
the apple in it until the apple is soft. 

Method 2. Cook the apple in J c. of water until it is soft and 
then add the same amount of sugar as in 1. 

Which method keeps the pieces of apple whole ? 

Cooking of Dried Fruits 

1. Look over and wash thoroughly in several waters. 

2. Soak over night in sufficient water to cover them. 

3. Cook in the water in which they were soaked. They should 
be simmered until very soft. 

4. Sugar may be added, if desired, when they are done. They 
really do not need any, and care should be taken not to add too much. 
Prunes, especially, are often spoiled by making them too sweet. 

Use of Fruit in the Diet 

Fruits serve about the same purpose in the diet as vegetables. 
They contain a large per cent of water, considerable cellulose, min- 
eral matter, and, in many cases, a fairly large amount of carbo- 
hydrate in the form of sugar. 

Fruits should be used freely in the diet. They may be served 
frequently for dessert for dinner or supper as well as for breakfast. 
It is better to have fruit for dinner than to have so much pie as is 
served in many homes. Pie is very hard to digest. Fruits may be 
served either fresh or cooked. For small children the cooked fruits 
are best. The importance of fruits and vegetables in the child's diet 
cannot be overestimated. Fruits should first be given to small child- 
ren in the form of juices; later stewed fruits and fresh fruits which 
are thoroughly fresh and ripe may be added. Sweet fruits, as 
dates, prunes and bananas are better with starchy foods than the 
acid fruits. Acid fruits should not be eaten with milk or cream. 

Apples and prunes both contain some iron, the prunes having 
more than the apples. 

DRIED FRUITS 

When fruits ai-e dried, a large part of the water is removed and, 
before cooking them, the water should be restored. This can be done 
by long soaking. Why are fruits dried? Name several of the most 
common ones. 

Dried fruits are so often poorly prepared that they have acquired 
an undeserved bad reputation. When properly cooked, they are very 
appetizing and wholesome. Stewed prunes are quite a popular 
breakfast fruit. The dried fruits, when cooked, should be very soft 
and not too sweet. 



20 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

LESSON XV 

Carbohydrate Foods — Sugar 
PENOCHE 

2 c. brown sugar I c. 

3 c. water s c. 
2 tb. butter i tb. 
2 c. chopped nuts 1 tb. 

Boil sugar and water to the soft ball stage, 232 degrees. Remove 
from the fire; add butter and nuts. Beat until creamy and thickened; 
pour into a greased tin, and when firm cut into squares. 

PEANUT BRITTLE 

2 c. sugar i c. 

i c. peanuts 1 tb. 

Break peanuts in pieces or chop them. Line a greased pan with 
them. Put sugar in a sauce pan and heat until it becomes a thin, 
light brown liquid, stirring constantly. Pour over the peanuts and 
mark into squares. When cool, break in pieces. 

SUGAR 

Sugar is made for common use from sugar cane, sugar beets, and 
maple sap. This sugar is called "sucrose." 

"Glucose" or grape sugar, is found in honey, fresh fruits, and on 
the skins of dried fruits, as raisins, dates, etc. It is made for com- 
mercial use from the starch of corn. 

The sugar of milk is called "lactose." 

Sugar made from sugar cane and sugar beets is the kind most 
commonly used. From the sugar cane, molasses, brown sugar, gran- 
ulated sugar, cut-loaf, powdered, and confectioners sugar are made. 
Only white sugar is made from beets. 

Use of Sugar in the Diet 

Since sugar dissolves so rapidly, it is very easily digested. It is 
a carbohydrate, producing heat and energy in the body, and is a val- 
uable food when taken in small quantities. The amount used is 
largely the result of habit. Learn to use only a small amount of it 
on cereals and in beverages. 

Candy or other sweets should not be eaten just before meals, as 
they take away the appetite for more nutritious foods. A small 
amount may be eaten at the close of a meal as a dessert. Candy 
should never be given to small children. 

Evil Efifects of Eating Too Much Sugar 

1. If sugar is left on the teeth it will ferment, causing them to 
decay. 

2. If too much is eaten at one time, it will ferment in the 
stomach and interfere with the digestion of other foods. 

3. It contains no mineral matter and mineral matter is very 
necessary for the body. If too much sugar is eaten the appetite for 
foods which contain mineral matter is destroyed and the body is 
poorly nourished. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



21 



Cooking of Sugar 

Syrup, which is a solution of sugar in water, is heated to dif- 
ferent degrees of temperature in the making of candies. 

Pure water cannot be heated above 212, its boiling point. When 
some substance is dissolved in it the boiling point is raised and as 
the concentration increases the boiling point rises. 

The following are some of the degrees of concentration often used 
in candy making: 

Soft Ball, 232 degrees to 238 degrees. When a little which has 
been dropped in cold water can be rolled into a soft ball. 

Examples: — Fondant and fudge. 

Hard Ball, 254 degrees. When a little which has been dropped 
into cold water becomes hard. 

Example : — Caramels. 

The Crack, 260 degrees to 275 degrees. When a little dropped 
into cold water becomes brittle. 

Example : — Taffies. 

Find the cost of the large recipe of penoche. 

Cost of Penoche 



FOOD 


Amount 


Cost 


Brown Sugar 








Butter 










Nuts 








1 1 


Water 

1 




Total 





LESSON XVI 

Protein Foods— Milk 

JUNKET PUDDING 

qt. milk 
tb. sugar 
junket tablet 
t. vanilla 
t. salt 
tb. cold water 



1 c. 

1 tb. 

1 

4* 

i t. 

spk. 
1 t. 



Nutmeg 



Heat the milk in the double boiler until luke warm; add sugar, 
salt, vanilla and junket tablet which has been dissolved in the cold 



22 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



water. Let it stand in a warm place undisturbed until it thickens. 
Then chill. Grate a little nutmeg over the top. Serve with cream 
or fruit. 

Review the classification of foods in Lesson 1 and the method of 
cooking protein foods in Lesson IIL 

Experiments 

(a) Test a little milk with iodine. Does it contain starch? 

(b) Test a little milk with nitric acid. Does it contain protein? 
What happens to the milk besides its change of color? 

(c) Warm a half a cupful of milk until luke warm; add one- 
eighth of a junket tablet which has been dissolved in one teaspoonful 
of cold water. Let stand undisturbed until cold. What happens? 
Stir it. What happens? The solid part, or curd, is the protein of 
the milk, and is called "casein." The liquid, or whey, is water with 
some sugar (milk sugar) dissolved in it. 

(d) What rises to the top of milk when it stands for some time? 
This contains a good deal of fat. Fat gives heat and muscular energy 
to the body. What do starch and protein do for the body? 

Composition of Milk and Its Use in the Body 

Water 87-88% 

Protein 3- 4% 

Fat 3- 5% 

Carbohydrate 4.5- 5% 

Mineral Matter 0.7% 

Milk contains a large amount of water, but contains enough of 
the other foodstuffs to make it a valuable food. It contains some of 
each one of the foodstuffs and this is to be expected since infants 
and small children live on it alone. The foodstuffs are not in the 
right proportion to make it an exclusive food for older persons. The 
mineral matter of the milk is especially adapted to the needs of the 
growing child and it should be used freely in its diet. The protein 
of the milk is valuable for tissue building for both old and young. 
Skimmed milk is just as valuable for its protein and mineral matter 
as whole milk since skimming removes the fat only, and it might be 
more extensively used than it is. If skimmed milk can be purchased 
it furnishes protein at a very reasonable price. 

Milk is a food, and less of other food should be eaten at a meal 
when it is served. The stomach contains a substance called rennin 
which causes the milk to coagulate as the junket did. Milk should 
be sipped slowly. When a large amount is swallowed at one time it 
is coagulated in a large lump in the stomach and the digestive 
juices can reach only the outside of it and it is digested more slowly 
than when taken in small amounts. 

Milk can be combined with other foods to form many palatable 
dishes which may be served for the main course of a meal or for 
dessert. Milk soups make excellent lunch dishes and custards make 
nutritious and easily digested desserts. 

Care of Milk 

Milk is more liable than almost any other food to contain disease 
germs. Bacteria grow very readily in milk. It quickly absorbs 
tastes, odors and impurities. From the time it is drawn from the 
cow until it is used it should be kept in clean glass, earthenware, or 
bright tin vessels (never in wood) in a cool, clean place. It should 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 23 

be kept covered. Milk should never contain sediment. Milk sold 
from open cans is more likely to contain dirt than bottled milk, and 
to sour quickly. While milk is being drawn from the cow, the milker, 
the pail and all the surroundings should be absolutely clean. * 

All dishes in which milk is kept should be thoroughly washed and 
scalded with boiling water after each use. 

* Read Farmers' Bulletin No. 413, U. S. Department of Agricul- 
ture, on "The Care of Milk and Its Uses in the Home." 



LESSON XVII 

Protein Foods— Milk 

General Directions for Making Cream of Vegetable Soups 

Cook the vegetable in water until very soft. Press it through a 
sieve, using the cooking water to wash the pulp through. Add the 
pulp to the hot milk. 

The butter and flour should be rubbed to a smooth paste and 
stirred into the hot liquid. 

Onions, herbs and whole spices may be cooked in the milk or 
water used in the soup; other seasonings are added last. 

The general proportion of ingredients used is as follows: 

1 qt. liquid; 1 to 2 cups vegetable pulp; 2 tb. butter; 2 to 3 tb. 
flour; 1 t. salt; from a few grains to I t. pepper. 

Tomato Soup 

1 pt. tomatoes 1 t. parsley 

2 t. salt 4 t. celery salt 

1 slice onion i t. sugar 

2 cloves I t. soda 

J a bay leaf 1 pt. thin white sauce 

Boil together the tomato and the seasonings for five minutes; rub 
through a strainer. While hot add the soda. Add this mixture to 
the white sauce; if the white sauce is added to the tomato it will 
curdle. Combine just before serving. 

Pea Soup 

1 pt. of peas 1 qt. thin white sauce 

1 pt. of cold water 
Boil the peas in the water until they are soft. Rub them through 
a strainer and add the water in which they were cooked. Add the 
peas to the white sauce and add more salt and pepper if desired. 

For class work use one-fourth of the recipe for tomato soup and 
one-eighth of the recipe for pea soup. 

Croutons 

Butter a slice of bread. Cut it in small cubes, put them in a pan 
and brown in the oven or broiler, stirring frequently. 

Cream Soups and Their Use in the Diet 

Cream soups are a combination of white sauce and strained vege- 
table pulp. 

The vegetables most commonly used are tomatoes, peas, beans, 
corn, celery, potatoes and asparagus. Old and tough vegetable c may 
be used as the tough part is strained out. 

Cream soups are economical, nourishing and easily digested, and 
might be served frequently, but are too rich to precede a heavy meal. 
For this reason they are better served at luncheon than at dinner. 

The milk of the soup furnishes protein and the vegetable pulp 
which is added furnishes mineral matter and other foodstuffs which 



24 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



vary with the vegetable used. What foodstuffs were added by the 
tomato and what by the peas? 

Small children cannot eat the coarse fibre of vegetables, but do 
need the mineral matter which they contain and therefore when vege- 
table pulp is added to milk to make soup a food is obtained which is 
excellent for small children. 



LESSON XVIII 

Protein Foods— Milk 

COCOA 

h tb. cocoa i c. milk 

J tb. sugar Speck of salt 

I c. water 

Mix sugar and cocoa and add cold water. Boil three minutes. 
Add to it the scalded milk and cook in double boiler for five minutes 
or longer. When done, beat with the Dover egg beater to prevent 
the formation of scum on the top. The proportion of water and milk 
may be varied. Milk is a protein food. Foods made of milk do what 
for the body? 

SANDWICHES 

Bread for sandwiches should be at least one day old. It should 
be cut thin and even, and buttered so that two slices will fit together 
perfectly. To do this, lay the slices in a pile just as they come from 
the loaf; take the first two slices and lay them on the table, having 
the sides that were together uppermost; butter them, put in the fill- 
ing and place them together again. Be sure that all of the slice is 
buttered. For all ordinary occasions the crusts should be left on. 
The butter, if hard, should be creamed to make it spread easily. 

There are many kinds of fillings for sandwiches. Meat, cheese, 
egg, nuts, fresh green vegetables, and preserves are often used. 
Meat should be ground or chopped and may be mixed with salad 
dressing. Salad dressing is used in many fillings. Lettuce or young 
onions with salad dressing make very attractive and palatable sand- 
wiches. 

Cocoa and sandwiches are often served for an afternoon or even- 
ing lunch. 

Suggestion to Teachers: Have all the cocoa which is made put 
in a pitcher or cocoa pot and poured at a table by one of the girls. 
Have other girls pass it and the sandwiches. Directions for passing 
dishes are given in Lesson 36. 

Use of Cocoa in the Diet 

Cocoa when made of milk is a beverage furnishing considerable 
protein, and is an excellent food for adding milk to the diet. It 
should not be given to very small children, but is a good beverage 
for older children, especially when they will not drink milk. It con- 
tains a small amount of a stimulating substance similar to that in 
tea and coffee, but is not considered to be injurious. 



FITST LESSONS IN COOKING 25 

LESSON XIX 

Protein Foods — Cheese 
BAKED MACARONI WITH CHEESE 



3 c. macaroni 


n tb. 


2 qts. boiling water 


1 pt. 


1 tb, salt 


i t. 


i c. grated cheese 


1 tb. 


1 c. thin white sauce 


i c. 


(Use red pepper for season- 




ing the white sauce.) 




h c. buttered crumbs 


1 tb. 



Break the macaroni in inch pieces. Boil it in the water until soft, 
about twenty minutes, adding salt when nearly done. Drain through 
a strainer, and rinse with cold water. Put a layer of the cooked mac- 
aroni in a buttered baking dish and sprinkle with cheese. Repeat 
until the macaroni and cheese have been used; pour the white sauce 
over the top and cover with buttered crumbs and bake until brown. 

Buttered crumbs for scalloped dishes are prepared by mixing 
dried bread crumbs with melted butter, using one-eighth as much 
butter as crumbs. 

COTTAGE CHEESE 

1 qt. thick recently soured milk 

2 t. butter 
i t. salt 

Cream to make as moist as desired 

Heat the milk slowly in a pan set on the back of the stove or in 
another pan of hot water. Do not let it get too hot, as the curd will 
become hard and tough. When the curd is well separated from the 
whey, strain through a cloth. Squeeze the curd in the cloth until 
quite dry. Put in a bowl and mix in the butter, salt and cream. 
Serve lightly heaped up in a dish. 

MANUFACTURE OF CHEESE 

When milk sours, it separates into a thick white substance and a 
light yellow liquid. The thick, white part is called the "curd," and 
the liquid, the "whey." The sour taste is caused by an acid which is 
made from the milk sugar by bacteria which get into the milk from 
the air. Rennin, as we have seen, has the power of separating the 
casein from the curd in sweet milk. Cheese is made from the curd 
of either sweet or sour milk by subjecting it to different degrees of 
heat and pressure. The hard, cheap cheese is made from skim milk 
and the soft dairy cheese from whole milk. 

Composition of Cheese 

Cheese contains on the average about one third protein, one third 
fat and one third water. The fat varies according to the milk from 
which the cheese is made. Cheese contains so much nourishment in 
so small a bulk that it is called a concentrated food. Cottage cheese 
contains more water and less protein and fat than the harder cream 
cheese which is purchased at the store. 



26 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

Use of Cheese in the Diet 

Only a little cheese should be eaten at one time, but it should be 
more commonly used than it is for the substantial dish of the meal. 
Cheese may take the place of meat in the diet. Macaroni and cheese 
or cheese suffle may form the main dish of a meal. It is somewhat 
difficult to digest, and, for this reason, should not be eaten by deli- 
cate persons or small children. Cottage cheese, however, is easily 
digested and may be served often. It may form the substantial dish 
of a lunch or supper. 

Cost of Cheese 

A pound of cheese and a pound of round steak cost very nearly 
the same. The cheese has a little more than twice as much food 
value as the meat. Which is really the cheaper? How much cheaper? 



LESSON XX 

Protein Foods— Meat 

BROILING MEAT 

Only tender meat is good cooked in this way. The best cuts of 
meat for broiling are steaks cut from the loin (short, porterhouse, 
and sirloin). The steak should be cut from one to one and one half 
inches thick. A steak one inch thick should broil from seven to ten 
minutes, a steak one and one half inches thick from ten to fifteen 
minutes. 

To Broil by Gas. Light the gas five or ten minutes before the time 
to cook the steak, so that the broiling oven will be very hot. The 
steak should be left in one large piece to keep the juice in. Grease 
the rack over the pan and then lay the meat on it, or place it in a 
double broiler. When the meat has been under the flame about ten 
seconds turn it, so that the other side will be seared. Do not pierce 
it with a fork when turning. Why? 

When well seared on both sides turn down the gas and lower the 
pan if necessary. Turn several times during the cooking. Sprinkle 
with salt just before it is done, turning each side to the heat to cook 
the seasoning in. When done put it on a hot platter and spread with 
butter and serve immediately. 

Broiling by Wood or Coal Fire. The coals should be glowing hot 
with no smoke or flame. Place the meat in a greased double broiler 
and hold it near the coals for about ten seconds and then turn the 
other side to the coals for the same length of time. Keep turning it 
occasionally until it is done. Then season and serve as previously 
directed. 

Pan Broiling. A cast iron skillet should be used. Do not put 
the meat in until it becomes very hot. Grease it a very little with a 
piece of fat, then put the meat in the skillet and sear it on both sides. 
Turn the fire down and cook slowly, turning occasionally, until done. 
Season and serve as for the broiled steak. 

HAMBURG STEAK 

Meat which is a little tougher than that used for broiling may be 
chopped or ground fine, seasoned and made into cakes and then pan 
broiled. 

MEAT 

Meat is the flesh of animals which is used for food. The flesh of 
cattle, sheep and swine is called beef, mutton and pork, respectively. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 27 

The flesh of the calf is called veal, and that of the young sheep, 
lamb. 

The flesh of wild animals and birds is called game, that of do- 
mestic fowls is called poultry. 

The flesh of mature animals is more nutritious and more easily 
digested than that of young animals. Beef is the most nutritious 
meat, mutton ranks next; pork is nutritious, but is hard to digest; 
lamb is tender, but is not so nutritious as mutton; veal is the least 
nutritious and is hard to digest. It is liked for its flavor and to give 
variety. Good meat is firm, elastic, and of a bright uniform color 
when first cut; the fat is firm and light straw color. 

Structure and Composition of Meat 

Lean meat is muscle. All muscular tissue is made up of bundles 
of tube-shaped cells filled with juice. These are bound together by 
a white connective tissue containing tiny blood vessels and streaks 
of fat. The contents of the muscle fibre is a jelly-like substance 
made of protein, mineral matter, water and the substances which give 
color and flavor. 

When a muscle is used a great deal the walls of the tubes become 
tougher and the connective tissue increases in amount and toughness. 
The meat from the parts of the animal where the muscles are exer- 
cised is, therefore, a great deal tougher than that from muscles 
which are used less. In what part of an animal are the muscles 
used the most? Least? 

Reasons for Cooking Meat 

Meat is cooked to improve its flavor and appearance; to soften 
the fibre and connective tissue; to kill any germs or organisms which 
may be present. 

Cooking of Tender Meats 

Since the connective tissue in tender meat is not tough, in cooking 
it we do not have to consider the softening of the connective tissue. 
The main thing to be considered is the flavor. Cooking at a high 
temperature in dry heat developes flavor; and the keeping of the 
juice in the meat improves the flavor. Dry heat hardens the connec- 
tive tissue. Moist heat softens it. When the meat is exposed to a 
high temperature, the outside is quickly hardened and this hard coat- 
ing keeps the juices in the meat. To cook tender meat, it is exposed 
to a high temperature in dry heat for a short time and then cooked 
at a low temperature until done, which requires only a short time. 
In this way only a small amount of the protein, that on the outside 
of the meat, is hardened and that on the inside, being cooked at a 
low temperature, is soft, juicy and easily digested. What have you 
learned before about the cooking of protein? 



LESSON XXI 

Protein Foods— Meat 

DIRECTIONS FOR PREPARING A STEW 

Remove the meat from the bone and cut in one and one half inch 
pieces; sprinkle them with salt, pepper and flour. Cut some of the 
fat in small pieces and try it out in the frying pan; add the meat 
and stir so that the surface may be quickly seared. When well 
browned, put it in a kettle, rinse the pan with boiling water and add 
it to the meat. Add also the remaining fat and the bone which has 



28 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

been cut in small pieces, and then cover with boiling water. Boil 
about fifteen minutes and then cook at a lower temperature for sev- 
eral hours or until tender; this may be done in a fireless cooker. 
When done remove the bones and larger pieces of fat. Thicken the 
gravy with flour mixed with enough water to make it pour easily, 
using two tablespoonsful of flour for each cup of gravy. The thick- 
ening should be entirely free from lumps. To add it to the gravy, 
first add some of the hot gravy to the thickening and then pour the 
thickening into the remaining hot gravy, stirring constantly until it 
boils. 

Stew With Rice Border 

Boil some rice as in Lesson X. When it is done, make a border 
of it around the outside of a platter and pour the stew in the center. 
Serve for dinner. 

Cooking of Tough Meats 

Tough cuts of meat are less expensive than tender cuts. They 
have just as high a food value, and, if properly cooked, are just as 
palatable. Every housekeeper should learn how to cook them. 

Tender meat is cooked to improve its flavor and appearance; 
tough meat, in addition to these requisites, must have its connective 
tissue softened. This can be done by moist heat, that is, by cooking 
it in hot water or in steam, and cooking it thus for a long time. It 
must be cooked below the boiling temperature, so that the protein 
will not be made hard and tough. The two most common ways of 
doing this are called "boiling" and "stewing." 

_ To "boil" meat, it is plunged into boiling water and cooked at 
this temperature for about fifteen minutes. Why? It is then sim- 
mered until it is tender. Why simmered? Salt the meat about an 
hour before it is done. 

To "stew" meat it is cut in small pieces, so that it will cook more 
quickly and so that some of the juices will be extracted for the 
gravy. With this exception, the method of "stewing" is practically 
the same as "boiling." 

Just how does the method for cooking tough meat differ from the 
method for cooking tender meat? 

Use of Meat in the Diet 

Most persons do not need meat more than once a day. They do 
need a protein food for each of the other meals, however. Name 
protein foods which might be used for the other meals. 

Cost of Meat 

Find the cost per pound of the following cuts of meat: 
Round steak Chuck 

Sirloin steak Rump 

Porterhouse steak Shoulder 

Prime rib roast Neck 

Do they all contain the same amount of solid lean meat? 



LESSON XXII 

Protein Foods — Meat 

WARMED OVER MEAT DISHES 

Appetizing meat dishes may be prepared from pieces of cooked 
meat which housekeepers often throw away or warm over carelessly 
in a frying pan. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



29 



Left-overs, properly used, may provide many a dainty and save 
many a dollar. 

In preparing meat for warmed-over dishes, remove all bone, 
gristle and fat. Cut the meat in small pieces, or chop it fine. If it 
is tender and well cooked, reheat it only; do not recook it. If not 
well done, simmer it until tender. 

Hash 

Mix and heat together equal parts of chopped cooked meat and 
chopped boiled potatoes. For each pint of hash add one tablespoonful 
of butter or drippings and three tablespoonfuls of hot water. Season 
with salt and pepper, adding onion, rarsley or other seasoning, if 
desired. To brown the hash add two tablespoonsful of milk and let 
it cook until brown. It may be folded like an omelet. 

Minced Meat on Toast 

Chop fine any cold lean meat. Season and warm in gravy or 
white sauce sufficient in amount to moisten it. Spread it on slices 
of toast. 

For class work, make a gravy, using two tablespoonsful of the 
stock in which the meat was cooked and two tablespoonsful of milk, 
thickening it with two-thirds tablespoonful of flour. Add one heaping 
tablespoonful of chopped meat. Season to taste. Spread on one slice 
of toast. If there is no meat stock, all milk may be used for the 
gravy, or water may take the place of the stock. 

Diagram Showing Cuts of Beef 




1. Loin 

2. Sirloin 

3. Rump 

4. Round 

5. Top Sirloin 

6. Prime Ribs 



7. Blade 

8. Chuck 

9. Neck 

10. Cross Ribs 

11. Brisket 

12. Shoulder 



13. Navel 

14. Plate 

15. Flank 

16. Leg 



Cuts of Beef 

The butcher cuts a beef through the backbone into halves. Each 
half is then cut between the twelfth and thirteenth ribs into the hind 
quarter and the fore quarter. 



30 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



The most of the meat of the fore quarter is of lower grade and 
tougher than that of the hind quarter and sells for a less price. The 
best meat of the beef is found just back of the middle of the back 
bone, decreasing in tenderness toward the extremeties. In the fore 
quarter the cuts from the ribs are the most tender. These are used 
for roasts, the first seven ribs which are cut being called the prime 
ribs and the others the chuck. The prime ribs are roasted in the 
oven in dry heat. The tougher parts of the chuck and the shoulder 
make excellent pot roasts and boiling pieces. They furnish lean meat 
at a lower price than the prime ribs. The neck is used for stews and 
the shank for soup. 

The most tender part of the hind quarter, and, in fact, of the 
whole animal, lies just in front of the hip bone. This is cut 
into steaks called porterhouse. The bone in them is "T" shape and 
they are sometimes called "T" bone steaks. They are the most ex- 
pensive of the steaks. Back of the porterhouse steaks are the sirloin 
steaks, which are not so tender, but are a little cheaper. They are 
classed with the tender meats and are used for broiling. The rump 
is back of the sirloin and is used for pot roasts. The round steaks 
are below the rump. The round is tougher than the porterhouse or 
the sirloin steak but has a good flavor. There is very little waste in 
the round and since it sells for a less price per pound than the por- 
terhouse or sirloin the actual cost of the lean meat per pound is 
much less. The inside, or top round from a first class animal is 
fairly good when broiled; the outside, or bottom round is less tender 
and is better cooked in moist heat. 



LESSON XXIII 

Protein Foods — Fish 
STEAMED SALMON 



1 large can salmon 


i c. 


2 eggs 


1 

2 


4 c. milk 


1 tb. 


i c. bread crumbs 


h tb. 


1 tb. melted butter 


1 t. 


1 t. lemon juice 


5 drops 


1 t. chopped parsley 


i t. 


1 t. salt 


1 t. 


g t. pepper 


spk. 



Drain the liquor from the salmon. Remove the bones and skin, 
and flake with a fork. Add the crumbs, milk, butter and seasoning, 
and mix lightly with a fork. Then mix in the well beaten egg. Pack 
in a well buttered mould (china or granite, not tin,) and steam one 
hour. The small mould will steam in half an hour. Serve with 
medium white sauce to which chopped parsley has been added, or 
with Hollandaise sauce. 



Use of Fish in the Diet 

The composition of fish is very similar to that of lean meat. It 
should be used to give variety to the protein diet. Fish, baked or 
broiled, is usually served for dinner. Creamed codfish is often 
served for lunch or breakfast with baked potatoes. Most fish is 
more easily digested and less stimulating than meat. Salmon, mackerel 
and eel are exceptions and should not be eaten by those who have a 
weak digestion. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 31 

Selection of Fish 

Fish spoils very quickly and, therefore, should be eaten only 
when fresh. In fresh fish the flesh is firm, the eyes bright and bulg- 
ing and the gills bright red. 

REVIEW 

1. Tell how to make cottage cheese. Why should it be cooked 
at a low tempei-ature ? For what foodstuff is it valuable? 

2. Is meat more easily digested when cooked at a high or low 
temperature? 

3. Meat is a protein food. Why, then, is it cooked at a high 
temperature for a short time? Does this make the protein which is 
on the outside of the meat less digestible? Is it worth while to sac- 
rifice the digestibility of this small amount of protein to improve 
the flavor of the meat? 

4. What effect does dry heat have upon meat? 

5. Tell how to make gravy. 

6. Tell how to cook macaroni. 

7. Name five cuts of meat and tell whether they are tough or 
tender and how they should be cooked. 

8. For which cut do you pay the higher price per pound, round 
steak or rump roast? Is there any more waste in one than in the 
other ? 



LESSON XXIV 

Fat 

SAUTED POTATOES 

Cut boiled potatoes into one fourth inch slices. Heat a frying 
pan; put in enough fat (half lard and half butter) to well cover the 
bottom of the pan, and heat until very hot. Put the potatoes in the 
pan, season with salt and pepper, cook until brown on one side, then 
turn and brown on the other side. 

Sauteing 

Saute means to cook in a small amount of fat. It is often called 
frying. Frying, however, means cooking in deep fat, that is, in 
enough to cover the food. 

The fat for sauteing should be hot when the food is put into it. 
When food is put into cold fat the fat pentrates further into it and 
more of it is made hard to digest. 

Use of Sauted and Fried Foods in the Diet 

Sauted and fried foods are hard to digest and, therefore, should 
not be served too often. They should never be given to small child- 
ren or sick persons. The digestive organs of children are not as 
strong as those of older persons, nor are those of the sick as strong 
as those of the well. The young or sick, therefore, should not eat 
foods which are hard to digest. Persons doing hard muscular work 
out of doors may eat more heartily of fried foods than those doing 
indoor work. 

Sauted foods are harder to digest than fried foods. 



32 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

Uses of Fat in the Diet 

Some fat is absolutely necessary for the growth and development 
of the body. The most easily digested forms of fat are cream, but- 
ter and olive oil and these should be used freely in the diet. It is 
possible, of course, to get too much fat, but this is not apt to occur 
if pie, cake and fried foods are avoided. It is better to eat the fats 
in simple, easily digested forms than to use them in pastry and for 
frying. 



REVIEW 

Table of Foodstuffs 
Carbohydrates 

(a) Starch 

(b) Sugar 

Uses in the Body 

1. Yield muscular energy and heat. 

2. May be made into fatty tissue. 

Proteins 

(a) Albumen in egg 

(b) Albumen in meat 

(c) Albumen in milk 

(d) Casein in milk 

(e) Gluten in flour 

(f) Legumen in peas and beans 

Uses in the Body 

1. Build tissues 

2. May yield muscular energy and heat 

Fats 

(a) Fat of meat 

(b) Butter 

(c) Cream 

(d) Fat in nuts 

(e) Olive Oil 

(f) Oil of grains 

Uses in the Body 

1. Yield heat and muscular energy 

2. May be stored in the body as fat 

Mineral Matter 

Uses in the Body 

1. Necessary for all vital processes 

2. Enters into the composition of all tissue. 

Water 

Uses in the Body 

1. Furnishes the fluid necessary for the body. 

2. Enters into the composition of all tissues. 

3. Helps regulate the temperature of the body. 
Classify the foods v*rhich have been studied, as follows: 
Carbohydrate Protein Fat Mineral Matter 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 33 



LESSON XXV 

Beverages 
TEA 

1 t. tea 1 c. boiling water 

Put tea in a scalded teapot and pour the boiling water over it. 
Let it stand for five minutes where it will be hot but not boil or 
simmer. Tea should not be boiled, because by so doing more tannin 
is extracted and that makes it more injurious. It should not be al- 
lowed to stand for any length of time upon the grounds for the same 
reason. If it must be kept before serving, it should be poured off 
the grounds. 

COFFEE 

2 tb. coarsely ground coffee 3 tb. cold water 

g tb. beaten egg 1 c. boiling water 

Put the coffee with the egg and cold water in the scalded coffee- 
pot. Let boil. Add boiling water. Let it boil for abount one minute. 
Let it stand where it will keep hot, but not boil, for about five 
minutes. The egg may be omitted or egg shells may be used. Serve 
with cream or hot milk, and sugar, if desired. Coffee should not be 
boiled for any length of time nor allowed to stand upon the grounds 
for the same reason that tea should not be allowed to stand. Pour 
it off the grounds, if it must be kept. 

General Rules 

1. Keep tea and coffee in closely covered jars, otherwise they 
lose their flavor. 

2. Do not use tin teapots or coffeepots. 

3. Scald teapots and coffeepots before using. 

4. Empty and thoroughly clean teapots and coffeepots after 
each using. 

5. Use freshly boiled water in making tea and coffee. 

BEVERAGES 

The principal use of beverages, or drinks, is the quenching of 
thirst. Water, therefore, is the best of beverages, other drinks sat- 
isfying thirst only by means of the water they contain. 

Drinking Water 

Good drinking water is a clear, colorless, almost tasteless liquid, 
free from disease germs, and contains a small amount of mineral 
matter. Water from streams and that from wells which are so sit- 
uated that water from barnyards and cesspools may drain into them 
is likely to contain sewage and often disease germs, especially 
typhoid germs. Such water should not be used for washing food 
and dishes, or for drinking, unless it has been boiled. Boiling water 
for twenty minutes kills the g'^rms. 

One should be very careful not to drink from the same cup from 
which other persons drink. Diseases are often carried from one 
person to another in this way. Most states now have laws against 
the use of a common drinking cup in public places. Does your state 
have such a law? 

Use of Water in the Body 

Water dissolves and helps digest the food, carries off waste pro- 
ducts, keeps the temperature normal and enters into the composition 



34 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

of all tissues. It constitutes about two thirds of the body. About 
three pints should be drunk each day. 

Use of Tea and Cofifee in the Diet 

Tea and coffee contain a substance called theine, or caffeine, 
which is pleasantly stimulating, but is injurious, if taken in excess. 
Even in small amounts it is injurious to children and should never 
be given to them. Tea and coffee also contain a bitter substance, 
tannin, which interferes with digestion. 



LESSON XXVI 

Flour Mixtures 
FLOUR 

The following cereals, or grains, wheat, rye, buckwheat, rice, 
barley and some others, are, by the process of cleansing, grinding 
and sifting made into flours. 

The flour made from wheat is most extensively used in this 
country. 

The bread made from wheat flour is a very valuable food. It 
contains all the foodstuffs, and, while starch is present in largest 
amount, so that it is classified as a starchy food, there is enough 
protein in it to make it valuable as a tissue building food. Since we 
have to eat so much starch to get this protein, it is best to serve 
with bread some food which contains much protein and no starch, as 
meat and eggs. The portein in wheat when moisted is called 
"gluten." 

Cereals contain valuable mineral matter, a large part of it being 
in the outer bran coats. This is taken out when white flour is made, 
but is left in graham and whole wheat. Would it be a good thing 
then to eat some bread made from graham and whole wheat flour? 

Gluten is an elastic substance which is easily stretched by the 
expansion of any enclosed gas. Holes are thus formed, the walls of 
which are made of gluten, and this gluten, like other proteins, 
hardens when heated. In this way dough is made light. Rye flour 
contains the same kind of protein but the other grains do not con- 
tain an elastic protein and flour made from them will not produce a 
light dough. 

Experiment 

Mix half a cup of white flour with enough water to form a stiff 
dough. Knead it until it is smooth and elastic and then wash it in 
water until the water becomes clear. Cook the first water in which 
it was washed and then test for starch. Bake the residue 30 or 40 
minutes. This residue is the gluten. 

Flour Mixtures — Batters and Doughs 

Flour combined with a liquid and some substance which pro- 
duces a gas in the mixture, called a leavening agent, is made into a 
batter or dough which is then baked. 

Batters have enough liquid in them to make a mixture which 
will either pour or drop from a spoon. The first are called "pour 
batters" and the second "drop batters." In the pour batters there 
are nearly equal amounts of flour and liquid; in the drop batters 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 35 

there are about two measures of flour to one of liquid. When there is 
about three times as much flour as liquid, the mixture is stiff enough 
to knead and is called a "dough," 

Batters usually have salt added to them to improve the flavor and 
some shortening (fat) to make them more tender. Sugar, spices and 
extracts may also be added to give flavor. Eggs are often added. 
When small amounts of sugar and shortening are used we call the 
mixture "bread;" when larger amounts are used and flavoring added, 
we usually call it "cake." 

The breads may be divided into two classes. (1) Quick breads, 
and (2) Yeast breads. 

The quick breads take a shorter time for preparation than the 
yeast breads. 

REVIEW 

Have a written test on the preceding lessons. 



LESSON XXVII 

Flour Mixtures— Quick Breads 
POPOVERS 

1 c. flour I c. 

2 eggs i 

g c. milk i c. 

I t. salt spk. 

Sift flour and salt together; add milk gi'adually. Add the un- 
beaten egg and then beat two minutes with the Dover egg beater. 
Pour into hot buttered gem pans, filling them about two thirds full, 
and bake from thirty to thirty five minutes in a hot oven. 

Is the popover batter a pour or a drop batter? 

What makes the popovers light? 

Review method of Working in Lesson II. 

Success in making batters and doughs is dependent upon careful 
measurements, proper method of mixing, and upon baking. The 
baking is one of the most important factors. It is necessary, there- 
fore that one learns to control the oven which she uses. A moderate 
oven will brown a piece of white paper a light brown in five minutes. 
A hot oven will brown it a deeper golden brown in five minutes. 
Test the oven in this way and also find out how hot it feels to the 
hand in both cases. 

Gases Used to Make Batters and Doughs Light 

1. Air. Air may be put into a batter by beating it. 

Air may be put into a batter by beating it into egg first and then 
adding the egg to the batter. 

2. Steam. Steam is produced in a batter while it is baking 
when there is more water than will combine with the flour. This 
process occurs in thin batters. 

3. Carbon Dioxide. Carbon dioxide may be produced in batters 
and doughs in several ways, (a) by using baking soda and some 
substance containing acid, as sour milk or molasses, (b) by using 
baking powder, which is made of soda and some acid in the powder 
form, and (c) by using yeast. 



36 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

LESSON XXVIII 

Flour Mixtures — Quick Breads 
GRAHAM GEMS OR MUFFINS 

1 c. Graham flour 2 tb, 

1 c. white flour 2 tb. 

i c. sugar 1 t. 

1 egg 1 t. 

i t. soda 1-10 t. 

1 t. salt i t. 

1 c. sour milk 2 tb. 

1 tb. butter I t. 

Sift the dry ingredients together. Beat the egg without separat- 
ing the white and yolk and add it to the milk. Add the liquid to the 
dry ingredients, stirring first and then beating. Add the melted 
shortening and beat it into the batter. Put in greased muffin pans. 
Bake in a hot oven about twenty minutes. Either tin or iron pans 
may be used. If iron ones are used they should be heated before 
putting the batter in them. 

Is the muffin mixture a pour or a drop batter? 

Experiment 

Mix soda and sour milk. Notice the bubbles which are formed. 
These bubbles are made by the gas, carbon dioxide, which is formed 
by the soda and the acid of the milk. 

When soda and sour milk are put in a batter, the gas which is 
formed expands, when heated, and makes the batter light. 

Amount of Soda to Use With Sour Milk 

To one cupful of thick, recently soured milk, use one-half tea- 
teaspoonful of soda. 



LESSON XXIX 

Flour Mixtures— Quick Breads 
BAKING POWDER BISCUITS 



2 c. flour 


i c. 


4 t. baking powder 


§ t. 


1 t. salt 


1 t. 


2 tb. shortening 


1 t. 


2 c. milk 


n tb 



Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Cut the short- 
ening in with knives or rub it in with the tips of the fingers, until 
the mixture looks like meal. Pour in the milk slowly, mixing with 
a fork. As soon as one portion of the dough becomes moist, push 
it to one side. When all is moist, put it on a floured board, sprinkle 
with flour, pat or roll to a thickness of three fourths of an inch. Cut 
with a floured cutter and place in a baking pan. Bake fifteen or 
twenty minutes in a hot oven. The biscuit should be light and flaky 
and should be a deep golden brown in color. 

The baking powder biscuit mixture is a soft dough. What makes 
it light? What made the muffins light? What made the popovers 
light? 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 37 

Experiment 

Put a little baking powder in a test tube and add a little water. 
What happens? Heat it. What happens? 

Amount of Baking Powder to Use 

Use from one to two teaspoonsful of baking powder for one cup 
of flour. 

YEAST 

Yeast is added to bread dough to make it light. Yeast is a very 
small plant. Like all plants, and also like animals, it needs food, 
moisture, a certain amount of heat, and oxygen to grow. Yeast 
feeds upon sugar or starch which is changed to sugar. The sugar 
is made into alcohol and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide is the 
gas which makes the dough light. In what other ways may carbon 
dioxide be made in doughs? The yeast grows best between the 
temperatures of seventy five degrees and ninty five degrees Fahren- 
heit. A temperature of one hundred and thirty degrees kills it. It 
will not grow at the freezing temperature, but is not killed. 

When yeast is added to dough the mixture must stand a sufficient 
length of time for enough gas to be produced to make the dough 
light. This will take several hours. During this time the dough 
must be kept at the right temperature for the yeast to grow. 

YEAST BREAD 

Three things are necessary for making bread, flour, liquid and 
yeast. Salt is almost always added for flavor. Some shortening is 
generally used to make the bread a little more tender, and sugar 
may also be added. Sugar hastens the gi-owth of the yeast; salt 
and shortening retard its growth. 

Different liquids may be used for bread. All water or all milk, 
or a mixture of the two, potato water, and the whey from sour milk 
are the most common ones. 

Bread is a soft dough, three measures of flour being used for 
each measure of liquid. 



LESSON XXX 

Flour Mixtures— Yeast Bread 
BREAD 

h c. liquid 

i cake compressed yeast 

1 t. sugar 

2 t. salt 

h tb, shortening 

li c. flour 

There are two general methods used for making bread. 

First — Sponge Method 

Step 1. Put the yeast to soak in a small amount of the liquid, 
which should be lukewarm. Measure the sugar and lard into the 



38 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



mixing bowl and add to it about one half of the flour and the soaked 
yeast. Beat this batter thoroughly. Set it in a warm place to rise 
until it is full of bubbles. (A double boiler may be used for keeping 
this small amount of bread warm at school.) 

Step 2. When the bread is light add the salt and the remainder 
of the flour. Knead it on a board for about fifteen minutes, until it 
is smooth and elastic and does not stick. Set it in a warm place to 
rise until it has doubled its bulk. 

Step 3. Knead again for about three minutes. Let it rise again 
in a warm place until double its bulk. 

Step 4. Knead enough to shape into loaves, place the loaves in 
warm, well greased pans, let them stand in a warm place to rise 
until double their size. 

Step 5. Bake in a moderate oven, baking a large loaf sixty min- 
utes and a small one thirty five minutes. Remove the loaf from the 
pan and let it stand where air can circulate freely around it until it 
is cold. 

Step 6. Place it, unwrapped, in a tight jar with a tightly fitting 
cover. The jar should be scalded several times a week. 

Second— Stiff Loaf Method 

The stiff loaf method differs from the sponge method in the 
following way: The batter is not allowed to get light, the salt and 
the remainder of the flour being added immediately, the dough 
kneaded and then placed in a warm place to rise, that is. Step 2 fol- 
lows Step 1 immediately. 

Dry yeast or compressed yeast may be used. When dry yeast is 
used the first rising takes over night. When compressed yeast is 
used, the first rising takes from one to three hours. A sponge will 
rise more quickly than a stiff loaf. The second and third risings 
require from one hour to one and one half hours. For school work 
one rising may be omitted, but the bread will not be quite so good, 
that is, Step 3 may be omitted. 

Cost of Small Loaf of Bread 



FOOD 


AMOUNT 


COST 


Flour 






Yeast 






Sugar 






Shortening 






Salt 






Total 







The small loaf should weigh about eight ounces. How much does 

the baker's five cent loaf weigh? 



Digestibility of Bread 

Bread which is twenty four hours or more old is a very nutritious, 
easily digested food. When warm it is hard to digest. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 39 

BREAD JUDGING 

Bread Judging Score Card 

Shape 5 

Crust 5 

Doughiness and Moisture 25 

Texture and Grain 30 

Flavor 30 

Color 5 

100 
Shape 

The loaf should be uniform in size, slightly rounded on top, and 
not bulge over the sides of the pan. To secure this result, have a pan 
of the right size, knead the bread thoroughly and bake it, when it 
has doubled its bulk, in a moderate oven. 

Crust 

The crust should be a good golden brown over the entire surface. 
It should be crisp and about one fourth of an inch thick. 

Doughiness and Moisture 

Doughiness and Moisture depend upon the proportion of flour and 
liquid used and upon the baking. To test for doughiness and mois- 
ture, cut the loaf in two; press the cut surface lightly with the 
finger; if the dent springs back, it is of the proper stiffness; if it does 
not spring back, it has not enough flour in it or it has not been suffi- 
ciently baked. If a hard pressure is necessary to dent it, the bread 
has too much flour in it. 

Texture and Grain 

The bread should be light and have a fine even grain throughout, 
with no large holes in it, none larger than a grain of wheat. The 
bread should be uniformly light, with no heavy streaks. To secure 
good texture and grain, the bread should be thoroughly kneaded and 
should be baked, as soon as it has doubled its bulk, in a moderate 
oven. 

Flavor 

The bread should have a sweet, nutty flavor. There should be no 
taste of the yeast, no sourness and no musty taste. The flavor de- 
pends largely upon the temperature at which the bread is allowed 
to rise. If it is not warm enough, the yeast will grow too slowly and 
the bread will become sour. 

Color 

The inside of the loaf should be a good cream color. 



40 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

LESSON XXXI 

Flour Mixtures — Plain Cake 
PLAIN CAKE 



3 c. butter 


1 tb. 


1 c. sugar 


2 tb. 


2 eggs 


1 


h c. milk 


2 tb. 


li c. flour 


6 tb. 


2 t. baking powder 


J t. 


1 t. vanilla 


6 drops 



Prepare pans. Sift flour and baking powder together. Cream 
the butter and sugar together thoroughly. Add the yolks of the 
eggs to the butter and sugar and beat the mixture. Add the milk 
without stirring. Add the flour; stir it in and then beat well. Add 
the flavoring and fold in the whites of the eggs which have been 
beaten very stiff. Put the cake in a tin which has been well greased 
and floured. Bake in a moderate oven. 

The oven is hot enough for butter cakes when it turns a piece of 
white paper a light brown in five minutes. This is called a moderate 
oven. A loaf cake should bake from forty five to sixty minutes. 
Small cakes and layer cakes bake in about twenty minutes.. The 
cake is done when it shrinks from the pan and springs back when 
touched lightly. 

In baking a cake, divide the time into quarters. 

1. It should begin to rise. 

2. Continue rising and begin to brown. 

3. Continue browning. 

4. Finish baking and shrink from the pan. 

A good butter cake should be smooth on top and a good golden 
brown all over. It should round up slightly in the middle, but not 
shrink from the edges and rise sharply with a crack on top. Such a 
cake contains too much flour or has baked too quickly. The inside 
of the loaf should be slightly moist but not sticky, and of fine even 
grain with no heavy streaks. Coarse grained cake is usually caused 
by lack of beating or by too cool an oven. 

This plain cake recipe may be used as a foundation for a number 
of cakes. It may be varied by adding other flavorings, chocolate, 
nuts, or fruit. For chocolate cake add one ounce of melted choco- 
late before folding in the white of egg. Use one half a cupful of 
nuts or fruit. For spice cake sift with the flour one teaspoonful of 
cinnamon and one fourth of a teaspoonful of cloves. Spices are 
cheaper than extracts. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



41 



Cost of Plain Cake 


FOOD 


AMOUNT 


COST 


Butter 






Sugar 






Eggs 






Milk 






Flour 






Baking Powder 






Vanilla 






Total 







LESSON XXXII 

Flour Mixtures — Sponge Cake 
SPONGE CAKE 



4 eggs 


1 


1 c. sugar 


3 tb. 


3 tb. cold water 


2 t. 


1 c. flour 


4 tb. 


IJ t. baking powder 


i t. 


I t. salt 


spk. 


1 t. lemon juice or 


i t. 


i t. vanilla 


6 drops 



Beat the yolks of the eggs until thick and lemon colored; then 
add the sugar gradually and continue beating. Add the flavoring, 
the water and the flour which has been mixed and sifted with the 
baking powder and salt and beat until thoroughly mixed. Cut and 
fold in the whites of the eggs which have been beaten very stiff. Do 
not stir or beat after the whites are in. Put in an ungreased tin, 
the bottom of which has been lined with paper. Bake from thirty 
to forty minutes in a very moderate oven. The cake is done when 
it shrinks from the sides of the pan and is firm to the touch. When 
done, turn the pan upside down and support so that the air can get 
under it, until the cake is cold. Do not try to remove it from the 
pan while it is warm, as to do so will make it fall. 

Since they have so much egg in them, they must be cooked as. 
eggs are cooked, this is at a very low temperature. They should be 
baked in a very moderate oven, as a high temperature makes the 
protein of the egg tough. A good sponge cake depends largely upon 
the baking. 

Classes of Cakes 

There are two classes of cakes, butter cakes and cakes without 
flutter, called sponge cakes. Sponge cakes have a great deal of egg 



42 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

in them and depend mostly upon the air which is beaten into the 
eggs for lightness. 

Digestibility of Sponge Cake 
Sponge cakes are more easily digested than butter cakes. 



LESSON XXXIII 

Desserts 
BAKED CUSTARD 

1 pt. milk i c. 

2 eggs h 

2 tb. sugar i tb. 

i t. salt spk. 

i t. vanilla 2 drops 

Nutmeg 
Beat the eggs slightly with a fork, add the sugar, salt, milk and 
vanilla. Pour into cups and sprinkle a little nutmeg on the top of 
each. Set the cups in a pan of hot water and bake in a moderate 
oven. Do not let the water boil. Why ? The custard is done when a 
knife inserted in it comes out clean. Set the cups in cold water so 
that they may cool quickly. 





SOFT CUSTARD 








2 c. 


milk 








h c. 




3 egg yolks 








1 




1 c. 


sugar 








1 tb. 




1 t. 


salt 








spk. 




i t. 


vanilla 








5 drops 




the milk 


in a double 


boiler. 


Why 


not 


heat it directly 


over 



the flame? Mix egg yolks with sugar and salt. Stir the hot milk 
slowly into this mixture. Return it to the double boiler and cook, 
stirring constantly, until the custard is thick enough to coat the 
spoon. Pour at once into a cold dish. When the custard is cold, stir 
in the vanilla. This may be served in sherbet glasses or it may be 
used as a sauce to pour around other puddings. 

A baked custard may be made from the white of the egg and 
the soft custard poured around it. For the white custard, use the 
recipe for baked custard, using two egg whites instead of one whole 
egg. 

DESSERTS 

A dessert is the sweet dish which is served at the end of the meal. 
It may be very simple or elaborate. For ordinary occasions it should 
be simple. It should always be attractive. 

The dessert should be planned with reference to the rest of the 
meal. If the main part of the meal is heavy the dessert should be 
light and vice versa. If the main part is high in protein the dessert 
should not contain protein and if it is high in starch the dessert 
should not be a starchy one. 

It is difficult to classify desserts but they may roughly be divided 
into the following groups: 

1. Fruits. These may be served either raw or cooked. 

2. Doughs. Short cakes and steamed puddings. Many pud- 
dings are made from cake and bread crumbs. 

3. Those thickened with starchy thickenings. Cornstarch and 
tapioca puddings. 



^ FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 43 

4. Those made from eggs and milk. Custards. 

5. Frozen Desserts. These may be made mainly of eggs and 
milk, or of fruit juice and water. 



LESSON XXXIV 

Desserts 

CORNSTARCH PUDDING 

1 qt. milk 1 c. 

6 tb. cornstarch li tb. 

4 tb. sugar 1 tb. 

i t. salt spk. 

1 t. vanilla k t. 

Mix the cornstarch with one fourth cup of the milk. Heat the 
remainder of the milk in the double boiler. When hot add the corn- 
starch mixture, stirring constantly. Cook directly over the heat until 
it begins to boil, stirring it. Then cook over hot water twenty min- 
utes. Add salt and vanilla and turn into a mould that has been wet 
in cold water. Chill, serve with cream. 

BREAD PUDDING 

Plain Chocolate 

Stale bread crumbs 2 c. 2 c. 

Milk 1 qt. 1 qt. 

Sugar s c. i c. 

Melted butter 1 tb. 

Eggs 2 2 

Salt i t. i t. 

Vanilla or 1 t. 1 t. 

Spice i t. 

Chocolate U squares 

Soak the bread in the milk. Melt the chocolate in a dish placed 
in or over hot water. Add to it one half the sugar and enough milk 
from the bread and milk to make thin enough to pour. Add this and 
the remaining sugar, salt, egg and vanilla to the bread and milk. 
Pour into buttered dish and set in hot water. Bake until set or firm. 
The foundation of bread pudding is baked custard. How does it 
differ from it? 

For class use make out a recipe using one half cup of milk as 
the basis. 

Review methods of fj.dding starchy thickenings in Lesson X. 



LESSON XXXV 

Frozen Desserts 

DIRECTIONS FOR FREEZING 

Scald the can, dasher and cover, and chill them. Pour the mix- 
ture which is to be frozen into the can, filling it not more than three 
fourths full. Fit the can into the pail of the freezer, so that it will 
revolve properly. Put ice into a strong canvas bag and pound it 
until very fine. Pack ice and salt solidly in the freezer around the 



44 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



can, using rock salt and ice in the proportion of one part of salt to 
three of ice. Turn the crank slowly at first, to permit the mixture to 
become thoroughly chilled, then more rapidly until the mixture is 
frozen. Cream frozen too rapidly is coarse grained. When the crank 
turns very hard the cream is frozen. Draw off the water. Wipe off 
the cover of the can. Remove the dasher carefully and replace the 
cover. Make a cork of paper and place it in the hole in the cover. 
Pack ice and salt solidly around the can, using only one fourth as 
much salt as ice this time. Cover the top tightly with paper and 
then throw a piece of carpet or blanket over the freezer. 

LEMON MILK SHERBET 

4 c. milk 

I2 c. sugar 

Juice of three lemons 

Mix the juice and sugar, add it slowly to the milk, stirring con- 
stantly. Freeze, pack and let stand about an hour. 

PHILADELPHIA ICE CREAM 

i qt. thin cream 
i c. sugar 
2 t. vanilla 

Mix the ingredients and freeze. Pack and let stand about an hour. 

FRENCH ICE CREAM 

2 c. scalded milk 

i t. flour 

1 c. sugar 

1 egg 

g t salt 

1 qt. thin cream 

1 tb. vanilla 
Mix flour, sugar and salt; add egg slightly ybeaten and milk grad- 
ually. Cook in double boiler twenty minutes, stirring constantly. Let 
cool, and then add cream and vanilla. Freeze, pack and let stand 
about an hour. 

Use of Frozen Desserts in the Diet 

Most frozen dishes are nutritious and easily digested. They make 
excellent desserts for either dinner or supper at all times of the year 
and especially in hot weather. How does the cost compare with that 
of other desserts? Are they any more difficult to make? 



Cost of Sherbet 



FOOD 


AMOUNT 


COST 


Milk 






Sugar 






Lemons 






Total 







FIRST LESSONS IN CX)OKING 



45 



Cost of Ice Cream 



FOOD 


AMOUNT 


COST 


Cream 






Sugar 






Vanilla 






Total 







How does the cost compare with that which you buy at the store? 
What are the laws in your state governing the sale of ice cream? 



LESSON XXXVI 

Planning and Serving of Meals 

Serve a simple meal. It is suggested that the girls serve the 
meal to themselves, that all be seated at the table, and that some of 
them act as waitresses and others as host and hostess. 

Food Requirements 

The amount of food required by one person each day depends 
principally upon the age, size, climate and the amount of physical 
exercise taken. Men require more food than women, principally 
because they weigh more. More food, especially that producing heat 
and energy, is required in cold weather than in hot weather. Persons 
doing hard physical work require more food than those engaged in 
sedentary occupations. In order to have enough protein to keep the 
tissue in good condition one protein food should be served for each 
meal. Eggs are usually served for breakfast, meat for dinner and 
some dish made of milk, eggs, or cheese for lunch. 

Especial care must be taken to have enough mineral matter in 
the diet. Fruit and vegetables must be served to furnish these. Fruit 
is usually served for breakfast and vegetables for dinner. The car- 
bohydrate necessary is likely to be furnished by the bread and pota- 
toes and the other cereal and vegetable foods. Sufficient fat is 
usually furnished by the butter and cream eaten. 



Breakfast 

A very light breakfast may consist of fruit, bread and a bever- 
age. It is made a little heavier by adding a cereal and heavier still 
by adding also some protein dish. 

The bread is often made into toast. When the bread is served 
with a cooked cereal it is especially good in the form of toast, as the 
crispness of the toast contrasts well with the softness of the cereal. 
Quick breads are often served for breakfast. Eggs make an excel- 
lent breakfast protein dish, especially for growing children, and are 
very extensively used. Milk and cocoa are the best beverages for 
young persons. 



46 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



Lunch 

A very simple lunch may consist of one substantial dish (prefer- 
ably hot) bread and butter and a beverage. To make it a little 
heavier a simple dessert may be added. For a still heavier one an- 
other substantial dish may be added. If only one substantial dish is 
served it should be a portein dish. What might be served for this? 

Dinner 

The ordinary dinner is made up of meat, potatoes, one other cooked 
vegetable, a green vegetable, bread and butter and a dessert. A thin 
soup may precede the main course. The soup helps to put the stomach 
in good condition to digest the food. The dessert may be omitted. 

The amount and composition of foods are not the only things to 
be considered in planning meals. Pleasing combinations must be 
served and the food must be attractive and appetizing. There should 
be variety from day to day but a great variety for any one meal is 
not necessary. 

The cost of the food for one person for one day w^ill average from 
twenty five to thirty cents. An elaborate menu w^ill cost considerable 
more, but it is possible to plan one which will yield the required 
amount of food for a little less. 



Cost of the Meal Served 



FOOD 


AMOUNT 


COST 






































Total 







Duties of the Hostess 

When a family entertains, the mother of the family is called the 
"hostess," and the father of the family, the "host." 

The hostess should tell her guests where to sit, if there are no 
place cards. 

She should be the first to sit down. 

She should be the first to unfold her napkin, and this should be 
done soon after being seated. 

She should be the first to begin to eat. 

She should be the first to rise from the table when the meal is 
finished. 

She should see that an interesting conversation is carried on dur- 
ing the meal. This is also a duty of the host. 

She should see that the waitress does not neglect her duties, and, 
if there is no waitress, she should see that the food is passed and 
that all guests are properly served. 

She should eat as long as her guests eat. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 



47 



ETIQUETTE OF EATING 

Sit up straight. 

Do not play with the silver on the table. 

Do not eat too rapidly, nor so slowly that you keep other guests 
waiting for you to finish. 

Do not eat "noisily." 

Do not use the elbow as a lever. 

Do not blow on the food to cool it. 

Do not leave the spoon in the cup. 

Ask some one person, by name, to pass whatever you wish. 

When passing the plate for a second helping, place the knife and 
fork across the center of the plate and send it to the server, asking 
for whatever you wish by name. When you have finished eating, 
place the knife and fork across the center of the plate, so that they 
will not fall off when the plate is removed by the waitress. 

Do not spread a whole slice of bread and bite into it. Break off 
small pieces. 

Put bread, salt, celery, etc., on the plate, not on the tablecloth. 

Do not talk with food in the mouth. 

If you are to return for the next meal, fold your napkin. When 
you are a guest for one meal only, or when at a hotel, lay your nap- 
kin, unfolded, on the table. 




SETTING THE TABLE 

Use clean, well laundered linen. Have the cloth long enough and 
wide enough to hang well around the table. Under the linen cloth 
have a silence cloth, either table felting or some other soft and 
heavy material. , , i 

Place the center of the tablecloth in the center of the table, hav- 
ing the folds straight with the edge of the table. Place in the cen- 
ter of the table a small plant, a vase of flowers, or a dish of fruit. 

The plates, silverware, napkin and glass placed for each person 
at the beginning of the meal are called "the cover." Place a plate 
right side up for each person, all being arranged symmetrically 



48 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

around the table. At the right of the plate, and near it, place the 
knife with sharp edge toward the plate. Place fork at left side with 
tines up. Place spoons at right of knives, bowls up. Place napkin 
at left of forks. The silverware, plate and napkin should be set one 
half inch from the edge of the table. Place tumbler at point of the 
knife. Place the butter dish, or bread and butter plate, at the left at 
the end of the fork. 

Place salt, pepper, vinegar, oil, jelly, etc., inside the line of plates. 

Place dishes containing food which is to be served directly in 
front of the server. 

Arrange chairs at sufficient distance from the table, so that they 
will not break the line of the cloth. 

Rules for Serving 

In passing a dish from which a person is to help himself, always 
pass to the left side, so that the food may be taken with the right 
hand. Hold the dish low enough and in such a position that the per- 
son can reach the food easily. 

When passing individual dishes, such as coffee, etc., set them down 
carefully from the right side, at the right of the cover. 

When passing a dish, keep thumbs and fingers as much out of 
sight as possible. Do not keep the handkerchief in the hand while 
serving. Do not put the fingers in the mouth or around the face, 
while serving or setting the table. 

Cold food should be served on cold dishes, hot food on hot dishes. 

When one course is finished, remove all dishes belonging to that 
course. Remove all dishes containing food first, then the individual 
dishes. Stand at the right side of the person and remove with the 
right hand, never piling the dishes on top of each other. One dish 
may be carried in each hand, or several may be placed on a tray. 

Fill the glasses before every course and oftener if necessary. 

Before the dessert is served, remove crumbs from the tablecloth 
with a brush, crumb knife or napkin. 

The father of the family serves the meat and the vegetables 
which are to be placed on the plate with the meat. 

The mother of the family serves the beverage, the dessert, and 
the vegetables which are placed in individual dishes. 

Rules for Cleaning Room and Table After a Meal 

Brush up the crumbs from the floor. Arrange the chairs in their 
places. 

Remove all dishes from the table. 

Pile all dishes of one kind together. 

Never set any food away on dishes used for serving. 

Brush the crumbs from the cloth and fold it carefully in the 
creases. 



1 


tb. 




3 

4 


tb. 




1 


tb. 




1 


tb. 




2 


t. 




1-10 


t. 


3-16 


t. 


1 


t. 




1-32 


t 


4 


tb. 





FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 49 



APPENDIX I 

SUPPLEMENTARY LESSONS 

These lessons may be given in addition to those suggested in the 
main course or all or a part of them may be substituted. 

LESSON A 

Flour Mixtures — Ginger Cake 

GINGER CAKE 

2 c. sugar 
s c. shortening 
i c. molasses 
i c. sour milk 
1 egg 

I t. soda 

II t. ginger 

I t. cinnamon 
i t. cloves 

II c. flour 
i t. salt spk. 

Sift together flour, soda, salt and spices. Cream together the 
shortening and sugar. Add the unbeaten eggs and beat w^ell; then 
add the molasses, the milk and the flour and beat again. Pour into 
a pan lined with greased paper and bake about forty minutes in a 
moderate oven. Cakes with molasses in them burn easily and care 
must be taken, therefore, not to have the oven too hot. 

What kind of a batter is the ginger cake mixture? What makes 
it light? What other things have been used to make batters and 
doughs light? 

Ginger cake is often called ginger bread and classed with the 
quick breads. It is more often used in our meals, however, as cake 
than as bread. 

Experiment 

Put a little soda in a dish and add a little molasses. What hap- 
pens? Heat it. What happens? 

In batters and doughs use one teaspoonful of soda for each cup 
of molasses. How much soda is used for each cup of sour milk? 
When using baking powder use from one to two teaspoonsful for 
each cupful of flour. 

LESSON B 

FAT— BUTTER 

When milk stands for some time the fat which it contains rises 
to the top and may be skimmed off, or the fat may be separated from 
the milk by a patent "separator" as soon as the milk is drawn. In 
either case some of the milk is left in with the fat and the mixture 
is called cream. The fat may be separated from the cream by churn- 
ing it, churning being a motion which causes the fat particles to be 
freed from the milk. This fat is called butter. Butter may be made 
from either sweet or sour cream. Sour cream is most often used 
and is prefered by most people. 



50 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

To secure good butter the milk and cream must be handled under 
the most sanitary conditions. All the dishes must be perfectly sweet 
and clean, and to have them so they must be thoroughly scalded each 
time they are used. The milk and cream must be kept in an abso- 
lutely clean place, free from odors, for milk absorbs odors very 
quickly and these affect the flavor of the butter. The cream must not 
be kept too long before churning or the butter will have a strong 
disagreeable flavor. For churning, the cream should be cold, about 
50 degrees in summer and 60 degrees in winter. When the fat has 
collected into masses of butter about the size of peas the churning 
should be stopped. The butter is then removed from the buttermilk 
to a butter bowl and clean, cold water added to it. The butter is then 
worked with a paddle for a short time in this water to wash out the 
buttermilk. This water is then turned off and fresh water and salt 
added, using two tablespoonsful of salt for one pound of butter. The 
butter is then worked again for a short time and the water then 
squeezed out until the butter assumes a waxy appearance. If 
worked too long it assumes a salvy appearance like lard. 

Good butter should not taste strong, rancid or musty or have 
any absorbed flavors. It should not taste too strongly of salt nor 
should there be so little salt in it that it will taste flat. When the 
butter is cut it should look firm and fine grained; very little moisture 
should be visible but it should not be dry enough to crumble. There 
should be no salt crystals, nor should it be mottled in appearance. 
The ideal color is a good cream color, and when butter coloring is 
used it should give this and not be too deep a yellow and it should 
be uniform throughout. 

The ideal package of butter is a firm, smooth block wrapped in 
oiled paper. In some states there is a law requiring all butter to be 
so packed and labeled with the maker's name before it can be sold. 
Would you consider such a law a good one? Why? 



LESSON C 

CHICKEN 

Selection. It is important to know whether a chicken is young 
or old before cooking it, because an old chicken is tough and requires 
longer cooking than a young one. If the breat bone is pliable the 
chicken is young. Long, sharp spurs and long hairs are indications 
of an old chicken, while pin feathers indicate a young one. 

The skin should be smooth and whole. The flesh should be firm, 
giving evenly when pressed, and there should be a good amount of 
fat under the skin. 

Dressing. Poultry should be dressed as soon as killed. The 
feathers may be removed quite easily while it is still warm if they 
are stripped off toward the head. If the chicken is plunged into 
water which is just below the boiling point the feathers will come 
off more easily. Remove the pin feathers and singe the hairs over 
a blazing paper or over a gas flame. Cut off the head and the feet. 
Cut out the oil bag on the tail. Make an incision through the skin just 
below the breast bone large enough to admit the hand. Loosen the fat 
and all entrails from the body so that they may be pulled out easily 
and not ruptured. Care must be taken not to break the gall bladder 
which is attached to the liver. Cut the end of the entrails loose from 
the body. Remove the lungs and kidneys which are found in the 
hollows of the backbone. If the crop and windpipe have not been 
withdrawn with the entrails, insert the first two fingers under the 
skin close to the neck and remove them. Wash the chicken thor- 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 51 

ougly both inside and out. Cut the gizzard, heart and liver, which 
are called giblets, from the entrails. Separate the gall bladder from 
the liver, cutting off any of the liver vi^hich has a greenish tinge. To 
prepare the gizzard for cooking, cut through the muscle covering at 
its thickest part, being careful not to break its inner lining, and peel 
the covering off slowly. 

Cutting Up a Chicken. If the chicken is to be cut up the legs and 
wings may be removed before it is drawn. To remove the leg cut 
through the skin between the leg and the body close to the body, 
bend the leg back, cut through the flesh and separate at the joint. 
Separate the upper part of the leg from the lower by cutting through 
the flesh at the joint and severing the joint. Remove the wing by 
cutting through the skin and the flesh around the wing next to the 
body and severing the joint. Cut a horizontal slit below the breast 
bone, extending it down on each side along the ribs to the back. Hold 
the breast of the chicken with the left hand and with the right bend 
back the rump until the joint in the back breaks. Remove the en- 
trails, cutting them from the body at the end. Separate the back 
at the broken joint. Cut through the ribs along the line of the breast 
bone to the joint between the wishbone and the back and separate 
the two at this joint. Cut off the neck close to the back. The breast 
may be cut into two or three pieces if desired. 

The composition of chicken is about the same as that of meat and 
the principles of cooking are the same. The white meat is more 
easily digested than the dark meat. 

Fried Chicken 

Roll the pieces of chicken in flour which has been seasoned with 
salt and pepper and put them in a frying pan which has hot fat in it. 
The fat may be all lard or part lard and part butter. When it has 
commenced to brown pour in a little water, cover the pan and let it 
cook slowly. When it is well browned turn it and brown it on the 
other side, cooking until it is tender. A little water may be added 
occasionally. Allow from 45 to 60 minutes for the cooking. 

Roast Chicken 

Rub the surface of the chicken inside and out with salt. Fill the 
body cavity with dressing and sew the edges together. Fasten the 
wings and legs to the body with skewers. Spread a little butter over 
the breast and legs and dredge with flour. Place in a roasting pan. 
Put a little water in the pan. Place the pan in a hot oven, and when 
the flour is browned reduce the heat. Baste (pour liquid over) the 
chicken frequently with the liquid in the pan. The chicken is done 
when the breast meat is tender. 

DRESSING 

3 cups stale bread crumbs 
3 teaspoonful salt 

1 teaspoonful powdered sage 
1-16 teaspoonful of pepper 

2 tb. of melted butter 

3 c. cold water 

Mix the ingredients in the order given. More seasoning may be 
added if desired. 



52 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

Stewed Chicken 

Cut the chicken in pieces as directed. Put in a kettle with enough 
boiling water to cover it. Let it boil for about five minutes and 
then simmer until tender, adding one half tablespoonful of salt and 
one eighth teaspoonful of pepper when it is about half cooked. When 
it is done remove it from the liquid and make the liquid into gravy 
as directed in the recipe for meat stew. The gravy will be improved 
if some milk is added to it. 



LESSON D 

CANNING FRUIT 

In the lesson on bread it was learned that yeast, which is a living 
plant, feeds upon sugar, changing it into alcohol and carbonic acid 
gas, if the conditions of heat and moisture are right. 

Fruits contain sugar. Yeast is found in the air. Yeast, there- 
fore, gets into fruit and changes its sugar into alcohol and carbonic 
acid, causing it as we usually express it, to "spoil." 

Yeast is killed by boiling the mixture which contains it. To keep 
fruit from spoiling, therefore, it is boiled and then sealed immediately 
in air tight jars where no new yeast can get into it. Sugar is us- 
ually cooked with the fruit to improve its flavor. 

The general directions for canning fruit are as follows: 

Step 1. Test the jars. 

Step 2. Sterilize the jars. 

Step 3. Prepare and cook the fruit. 

Step 4. Put the cooked fruit into the jars. 

Testing the Jars 

It is necessary to test the jars before using them to be sure that 
they are air tight. To do this fill the clean jars about one fourth 
full of water. Place the rubbers and covers on them, screwing the 
covers down as tightly as possible. Invert the jars and let them 
stand for fifteen or twenty minutes. They are air tight if no water 
runs out. If one is not air tight, try new covers and rubbers, and 
press the edge of the cover down tightly and invert again. 

Sterilizing the Jars 

Place the tested jars in cold water and heat them until the water 
has boiled about fifteen minutes. Dip the covers and rubbers in the 
boiling water before putting them on the jars of fruit. 

Preparing and Cooking the Fruit 

The methods for preparing and cooking various fruits differ so 
that no general method can be given. Do not cook fruit in a tin 
dish; use an enameled or aluminum one. Do not use a tin spoon for 
stirring. 

Filling the Jars 

Place the hot jar on a plate. Place the rubber on it. Dip into it, 
slowly at first, the boiling hot fruit, filling it to overflowing. Force 
out the air bubbles by running a silver knife between the fruit and 
the jar. Place the cover on and screw it down as tightly as possible. 
A funnel placed in the jar aids in filling it. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 53 

Preserving and Jelly Making 

Yeast will not grow in a concentrated solution of sugar. Enough 
sugar may be added, therefore, to fruit to keep it from spoiling 
without sealing it in air tight jars. This is done in making pre- 
serves, marmalade and jelly. To make preserves the whole fruit is 
cooked with the sugar. The pulp of the fruit is used for marmalade 
and only the juice for jelly. 



LESSON E 

BREAD GRIDDLE CAKES 

1 c. stale bread crumbs 1 tb. 

Is c. scalded milk | c. 

1 tb. butter (melted) i t. 

2 eggs 1 tb. 
i c. flour 2 tb. 

h t. salt 1-16 t. 

3 t. baking powder | t. 
■ 1 tb. sugar | t. 

Soak the crumbs in the milk. To the soaked crumbs add the but- 
ter, salt, sugar, flour — sifted with baking powder — and beaten egg, 
in the order given. Put two or three tablespoonsful of the batter 
on a hot griddle. Let it bake until full of bubbles, turn and bake 
several minutes longer. Turn once only. Serve hot, right side up 
on a hot plate. 

The batter for griddle cakes is a pour batter and this recipe 
might be used as an example of it instead of popovers. 

Use of Griddle Cakes in the Diet 

Griddle cakes are often hard to digest for three reasons: (1) they 
are cooked in grease, (2) they are cooked so short a time that the 
starch of the flour is not thoroughly cooked, and (3) they are served 
hot. 

The first objection may be overcome by using a griddle that does 
not need greasing, as aluminum or soapstone. The second may be 
partially overcome by using bread crumbs for a part of the flour. 
The third cannot be overcome. They should not, therefore, be used 
too freely in the diet. Should they be given to children and sick 
persons? 



APPENDIX II 

Hygiene 

HYGIENE OF EATING 

In order to have a sound body, and therefore a sound mind, it is 
necessary for each person to have the right kind and amount of food 
and to have it properly cooked and served in an appetizing and at- 
tractive way. It is also essential that the food be eaten in the proper 
way. The following rules are important ones to observe: 



54 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

1. Eat at regular times and do not eat between meals. The 
digestive organs need time to rest between meals. 

2. Masticate the food thoroughly. This involves eating slowly 
and will usually prevent over eating. Food must be thoroughly 
mixed with the saliva to be well digested and this can be done only 
by thorough chewing. 

3. Do not eat when tired. 

4. Do not take vigorous exercise immediately after eating. Rest 
but do not sleep. 

5. Do not bathe immediately after eating. 

6. Food should always be eaten under pleasant conditions. Fear, 
worry, grief and anger hinder digestion. A pleasant conversation 
should be carried on during the meal. 

7. Drink plenty of water, but do not use it to wash the food 
down, thus making it take the place of mastication. 

General Hygiene 

There are many things which affect the health of the body in ad- 
dition to its nourishment. The following are some of the most im- 
portant ones: 

Rest and Sleep. A girl of school age should have from nine to 
ten hours of sleep each night. This should be taken as regularly as 
possible. The evenings should be spent quietly at home with very 
little excitement. The time should be filled with interesting occu- 
pations but not with ones which excite the nervous system. 

Exercise and Recreation. Some vigorous muscular exercise should 
be taken each day. This should usually come immediately after 
school. It is best taken in the form of some game which involves 
recreation as well as exercise. Some housework during the day is 
excellent exercise. 

Fresh Air. We should live in well ventilated rooms at all times. 
Sleeping rooms should be thoroughly ventilated all night. This is 
best accomplished by opening one window at the bottom and another 
on a different side of the room at the top. 

Personal Cleanliness. The whole body should be kept clean by 
frequent bathing, a warm bath being taken once or twice a week 
and cold ones oftener. The clothing should be clean also. The teeth 
should be thoroughly brushed after each meal. 

Clothing. The clothing should be loose and comfortable, allow- 
ing perfect freedom of motion. It should be of sufficient weight to 
keep the body warm but not too heavy. It is dangerous to expose 
very much of the body in cold weather. Very low necks and very 
short sleeves and low shoes should not be worn in winter. Shoes with 
low, broad heels, large enough so that they do not pinch or cramp the 
foot in any way should be worn. 

SOCIAL HYGIENE 

In addition to the above things which pertain to personal hygiene 
alone there are others which affect the individual and at the same 
time one or more other persons and involve the spreading of disease. 
To avoid contracting and spreading an infectious disease observe the 
following rules: 

1. Keep the nails and hands clean and do not touch the face 
or mouth without washing the hands both before and after. 

2. Do not use towels, soap, combs, brushes, clothing or bedding 
which other people have used. Do not carry the handkerchief in the 
hand or leave it lying around. 

3. Do not put things in the mouth. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 55 

4. Do not wet the fingex's to turn leaves. 

5. Have your ovi?n drinking cup. 

6. Cover the mouth when coughing or sneezing. 

7. Do not spit on the floor, sidewalk or ground. Use a hand- 
kerchief or something which can be burned, 

8. Wash all dishes thoroughly, sterilizing them with washing- 
soda or boiling water. 

9. Do not buy or eat food which is exposed in the store, unless 
it is to be cooked after you get it. 

10. Do not handle food without first washing the hands. 



APPENDIX III 

SUGGESTIONS FOR RURAL SCHOOL WORK 

The advantages for teaching cooking in the rural schools are ex- 
ceptionally good for a number of reasons. 

The time for the lesson may just precede the noon recess so that 
the noon lunch of the pupils may be made the basis for the work. This 
makes it possible to use large recipes instead of the individual ones 
and the pupils also have an excellent opportunity to learn more 
about the planning and serving of meals. Some of the cooking for 
the lunch may be done at home by the pupils. Foods which require 
long cooking may easily be started before school in the morning or 
if there is a fireless cooker they mav be placed in that the night 
before. 

The rural school is especially fortunate in being able to include 
the boys in the cooking classes. The instruction in regard to the use 
of foods in the body is just as necessary for them as for the girls. 
They may help with the actual cooking or their practical work may 
be confined to the building and care of the fire, the carrying of fuel 
and water and disposing of the garbage. 

In carrying on the work it is advised that the lessons of the book 
be used in much the same order that they are presented that the 
sequence of thought may be preserved. Some variations would be 
advisable, however. The lesson on the canning of fruit might be 
given first since it is easy to get a variety of inexpensive fruits in 
the early fall, and also since they may be used during the winter for 
lunches. The lesson on sandwiches might also be given early in the 
course since they so often form a pai-t of the school lunch. 

The food cooked at school should be used to supplement the lunch 
which is brought from home. This is done with best results when 
the whole lunch is planned at school. At first all of the lunch should 
be brought from home except the one food which is to be cooked for 
the day's lesson. Later, several foods may be cooked at school, those 
from the first lesson being given as review work. 

The lunches should be so planned that they will furnish a well 
balanced and easily digested diet. Until the pupils have learned the 
classification of foods and the uses of the various foodstuffs in the 
body, the planning of the lunches should be done by the teacher, 
who should discuss with them the reasons for serving the foods 
chosen. 

A simple lunch would consist of one or two hot dishes, bread in 
some form, a hoi or cold beverage, a relish, and sometimes a dessert. 



56 



FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



It is necessary, of course, that the teacher have the co-operation 
of the mothers of the community to successfully carry on this work. 
The following menus are given as suggestions: 

1 
Creamed Eggs 

Bread and Butter 

2 
Boiled Rice With Tomato Sauce 
Meat Sandwiches 

3 

Macaroni and Cheese 
Lettuce Sandwiches 

4 

Cream of Wheat with Dates 
Toast Marmalade Baked Custard 

5 
Potato Soup 

Peanut Sandwiches Lettuce Salad 

6 

Creamed Potatoes Graham Muffins 

Pickles Fresh Fruit 

7 

Hash Bread and Butter Milk 

Baked Apples and Cream 



Baked Potatoes 
Jelly 



Fresh Fruit 

Apples 

Cookies 
Wafers 



Poached Egg on Toast 
Apple Sauce 

Tomato Soup 

Potato Salad 



Oat Meal 



Canned Fruit 



10 
Toast 



Ginger Bread 



Lettuce Sandwiches 



Sponge Cake 



Milk 



Croutons 



Cocoa 



Serving the Lunch 

Plan the lunches for a week at time so that the pupils shall know 
what they are to bring each day. 

Have the work so planned that each pupil shall have something to 
do and shall know exactly what it is and when it is to be done. 

Use the desks for tables, having each pupil set his own, using a 
paper napkin for a tablecloth and placing the knife, fork, spoon and 
glass in the correct position. 

Make the meal time a pleasant social hour. 

At the close of the meal each pupil should clear his own table. 



ADDITIONAL RECIPES FOR LUNCH DISHES 

Cheese Souffle 



2 c. grated cheese 

3 eggs 
Dash of Cayenne pepper 



2 tb. butter 

3 tb. flour 
i c. milk 
2 t. salt 

Make a white sauce of the butter, flour, milk and seasonings. Add 
the cheese and the well beaten egg yolks. Cool the mixture and then 
fold in the well beaten whites of eggs. Pour it into a buttered bak- 
ing dish and bake about twenty five minutes in a slow oven. Serve 
at once. 



FIRST LESSONS IN COOKING 57 



Meat Souffle 

Follow the recipe for cheese souffle, using chopped meat instead 
of the cheese. 

Welsh Rarebit 

2 tb. flour 1-16 t. soda 

2 tb. butter j t. mustard 

1 c. milk I c. grated cheese 

h t. salt 1 egg yolk 

Dash of Cayenne pepper 

Make a white sauce of the butter, flour, milk and seasonings. Add 

the cheese and the beaten egg yolk. Reheat it and serve it on crisp 
crackers or toast. 

Tapioca Pudding 

1 pint milk i c. water 

2 eggs 1 t. vanilla 
i c. tapioca 4 t. salt 

4 c. sugar 

Soak the tapioca in the water for an hour. Add the milk and 
cook in double boiler until the tapioca is soft. Add sugar and beaten 
yolks of eggs which have been mixed together. Cook, stirring it 
until it thickens. Add the salt and flavoring and fold in the beaten 
whites of eggs. Serve cold. 

-Rice Pudding 

4 c. milk i c. sugar 

s c. rice i t. cinnamon 

i t. salt 

Wash the rice. Mix the ingredients and pour the mixture into a 
buttered pudding dish. Bake about three hours in a very slow oven, 
stirring occasionally. Serve cold. 

Books and Bulletins for Reference 

The following bulletins may be obtained free from the U. S. 
Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C: 

No. 142 — Food, Principles of Nutrition and Nutritive Value of. 

No. 34 — Meats: Composition and Cooking. 

No. 391 — Meat: Economic Value of in the Home. 

No. 182— Poultry as Food. 

No. 85— Fish as Food. 

No. 526 — Mutton and Its Value in the Diet. 

No. 121— Beans, Peas and Other Legumes as Food. 

No. 128 — Eggs: Their Uses as Food. 

No. 413 — Milk, Care and Use of in the Home. 

No. 363— Milk, Use of as Food. 

No. 332— Nuts and Their Uses as Food. 

No. 348 — Bacteria in Milk. 

No. 241 — Butter Making on the Farm. 

No. 166 — Cheese Making on the Farm. 

No. 487 — Cheese and Its Economical Use in the Diet. 

No. 203 — Canned Fruits, Preserves and Jellies. 

No. 175 — Home Manufacture and Use of Unfermented Grape Juice 

No. 293— Fruit as Food. 

No. 93 — Sugar as Food, 

No. 521 — Canning Tomatoes at Home and in Club Work. 

No. 256 — Preparation of Vegetables for the Table. 



58 FORT DODGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS 

No. 359 — Canning of Vegetables at Home. 

No. 295 — Potatoes and Other Root Crops as Food. 

No. 249 — Cereal Breakfast Foods. 

No. 298 — -Food Value of Corn and Corn Products. 

No. 389— Bread Making. 

No. 375 — Care of Food in the Home. 

No. 270 — Modern Conveniences for the Farm Home. 

Books for Reference 

How the World Is Fed. — Carpenter. 

Bacteria, Yeasts and Molds in the Home. — Conn. (Ginn & Co.) 

Food and Its Functions. — Knight. (Scribner.) 

Foods and Household Management. — Kinne and Cooley. (Mac- 
millan.) 

Domestic Science, Principles and Application. — Bailey. (Webb.) 

Foods and Sanitation. — Forster and Weigley. (Row, Peterson 
& Co.) 

Principles of Cooking. — Conley. (Am. Book Co.) 



LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS 



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